


take the back roads

by hilourry



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Anal Sex, Beach Sex, College AU, Fingering, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Praise Kink, Public Sex, Rimming, roadtrip au, very slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-17
Updated: 2016-01-17
Packaged: 2018-05-14 10:41:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 31,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5740624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hilourry/pseuds/hilourry
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The one where Harry and Louis are roommates who are pining over each other and all they need is a road trip down the West Coast to bring them together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	take the back roads

**Author's Note:**

> hello hello so this is for my lovely friend @stylesftclouds on twitter who gave me this wonderful prompt to work with! i love this fic a lot and this is the first part in a three part series i plan to work on. thank you also to lacosta for being my beta and my rock when i need some motivation! i hope you enjoy :)

_May 7th, Washington State University, Washington._

Harry is quite positive that if he goes a whole summer without seeing Louis, he’ll die. They’ve practically been living in each other’s laps since August, and going three months without him on the other side of the country seems dangerous to his health. He needs to do something about this before Louis moves back to New York and Harry moves back to California for the summer. He knows texting and FaceTiming through the next few months won’t be enough; he needs Louis physically next to him, and, ideally, make him his boyfriend.

He might be getting ahead of himself there, though.

The two of them were randomly assigned as roommates over the summer. They became Facebook friends after getting their confirmation emails, but never really talked much other than deciding who would bring the TV and who would bring the microwave. Harry thought Louis was gorgeous from the first search of his name. His profile picture was him, shirtless, at the beach with Aviator sunglasses on and a smile brighter than the sun. (Now, it’s a silly selfie of the two of them, sticking their tongues out at the camera at some frat party they can’t remember the details of).

Anyway, after seeing how absolutely stunning Louis was, he was a bit nervous about keeping his cool when they were living in the same shoebox sized room. He thinks he’s been managing incredibly well for how badly he wants to jump on Louis’ bones. Sure, he wanks off whenever he gets the chance to in the showers, even if the flyers on the wall keep letting the residents know that it’s heavily frowned upon. Whatever, they can’t prove anything. It’s fine.

People have made the mistake in the past of thinking that they were together, mostly when they would be hanging off of each other at parties. They never went to pick up other people, were always too busy dancing with each other and drinking to even try. Louis’ gone back to a few guys’ places, and taken a few home, which always makes Harry want to yank his hair out, but it’s nothing too bad. It’s always Harry he crawls into bed with after, complaining about his hangover and convincing him to stay in bed all day, order pizza, and binge watch Netflix. Those one-night stands he has hold nothing on this. So, it could be worse.

Harry has zero plans for his summer, other than pining over Louis from afar and talk to him as much as possible. Harry was left with a huge inheritance from his deceased father, and now that he’s 18, he can finally touch it. There’s a lot of potential with that money, and he plans to use it wisely this summer.

He’s always wanted to take a road trip, now that he thinks about it. The thought of being out in the world, on his own, exploring unchartered territory; it’s all very cliché and wonderful. A road trip would mean he isn’t tied down to anything, that he can take time to find himself, to see where he belongs. Now, he’s got the money to do it, and just maybe, a best friend to tag along for the ride.

Harry spends time looking up _The Best Road Trip Routes On The West Coast_ on Google when he’s supposed to be writing his anthropology paper. It’s definitely worth it, though, when he finds the perfect route to go, and he’ll figure out the details on the way. All he needs is a van to get there, and, hopefully, Louis.

“Finish your paper yet?” Louis asks, walking into the room and throwing his backpack onto the ground. He stretches his arms over his head and dives into bed with Harry, trying to curl his head under Harry’s arm and peek at his laptop. “This doesn’t look like the Theory of Evolution to me, Styles.”

“I got side tracked,” Harry laughs softly.

“What is it?” Louis asks more seriously.

“My Super Awesome Road Trip Route,” Harry says simply. Play it cool, he thinks.

“Oh? What inspired this?”

“I don’t know,” Harry shrugs. “I just don’t want to be stuck at home the whole summer, you know? I’ve always wanted to go out and see the world. I figured the West Coast was a good start.”

“Sounds fun. Won’t you get lonely, though? Driving down the coast by yourself with no one to talk to?”

“Actually,” Harry says slowly. “I was wondering if you wanted to come with me.”

“You’re insane,” Louis laughs. “I can’t do that.”

“I’m serious, Lou! You should totally come with me. It would be so much fun,” he’s trying not to sound desperate, and he hopes it’s working.

“I can’t afford that, Harry,” Louis tries to laugh it off with a scoff, starting to sit up. “I’ve got to go home this summer, find a job and make some money.”

“I wouldn’t make you pay,” Harry says. Okay, now he sounds a little desperate. “I’ll do all the driving and pay for gas and food and stuff. I just want you to come with me.”

“I couldn’t ask you to do that! Absolutely not,” Louis shakes his head vigorously, but Harry grabs his wrist. Louis stops and looks up at Harry.

“Trust me, I have the money for it. I don’t want to go alone, and you’re the only person I want to take,” Harry says.

“How do you have money?” Louis asks suspiciously. “You have a secret job on the streets you aren’t telling me about? Maybe making pornos while I’m away at class?”

“All the time,” Harry grins. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve got it.”

“You’re not going to ask me for sex now, are you?” Louis teases. “Or maybe you’re going to kill me while we’re out on the road?”

“How did you know?” Harry smirks. “Damn, there goes the element of surprise.”

Louis laughs and shoves Harry’s shoulder. “I’ll only come if you’re absolutely sure you want me there. You don’t know how much I might talk, or maybe sleep the whole time and you won’t have anyone to talk to.”

“I’d want you there anyway,” Harry says simply. “Come. I promise I want you with me. I’ve already got the whole trip planned out for us.”

“Oh, really?”

“Well, not all,” Harry blushes slightly. “Most. I know which route we’re gonna take, and…that’s about it.”

Louis laughs loudly at that. “Wow, sounds organized.”

“It’ll be fine,” Harry pouts. “Stop for food when needed, stop where we want, it’s fine.”

“Alright. I guess that seems simple enough. When do we leave?”

Harry feels like he could fly to the moon.  
~  
 _May 15th, Washington._

“This is what we’re taking on our road trip?” Louis asks, holding back a laugh. He looks so cute with his backpack over his shoulders, fringe soft and sunglasses on. He’s got a pair of white shorts that really, truly accentuate his thick thighs and a grey soft t-shirt. Harry is so glad this boy is coming with him.

“Have to be comfy, right?” Harry laughs, spreading out his arms. “Don’t think it’s a babe magnet?”

“Not particularly, but I didn’t think that was the purpose of the trip,” Louis arches an eyebrow.

“No,” Harry shakes his head. “Not at all. But, not my point.”

It’s an old Volkswagen van. Realistically, he could have afforded something nicer, but something about road tripping it in something like this felt right and authentic. Besides, the back of the van has plenty of space to set up an area for them to sleep so they don’t need to spend tons of money on hotels. That ruins the magic, anyway.

“Well, I don’t even have a friggin’ car back home, so I guess I can’t complain,” Louis says.

“City boy like you doesn’t need a car.”

Louis smiles. He’s born and raised in New York City, and Harry is honestly stunned that he would ever come to Washington for school, but Louis got a great scholarship to play soccer, and Harry is beyond grateful he ended up so far from home. It’s total fate. Harry is a big believer in fate.

Harry suddenly feels a ball of worry in his belly. Louis doesn’t get to just drive home whenever he feels like it. He only goes home for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, and if anything seriously important comes up. Flights aren’t cheap. He’s been to Harry’s place a few times, when Harry would go home for a long weekend and take the long drive down to California to visit his own family. He’s near San Francisco, and he hasn’t really explored California the proper way. He wants to go all the way down to San Diego and really see it all. Now is as good a time as ever.

Anyways, Louis doesn’t get to see his family much, and now, Harry is taking a large chunk of his summer away from them. Louis was planning to spend time at home, find a job to make some extra cash, and probably hang out on Long Island to go to the beach whenever possible. Now, he’ll just be in an old van with only Harry to talk to. He’s so inconsiderate; Louis will resent him forever and they’ll never get married and have babies. Harry’s already mucked it all up.

“Hello? Earth to Harry,” Louis sings, waving his hand in front of Harry’s face. Off to a wonderful start, then.

“Hm?”

“I asked if you’re ready to take off. Everything okay?” Louis asks, suddenly more serious as his brows furrow together.

“Yeah, sorry, I was just thinking,” Harry shrugs him off. “I’m ready if you’re ready.”

“I’m ready,” Louis smiles. “Let’s get this trip started!”

Harry laughs and they throw their bags into the van. Harry had already taken the liberty of making a makeshift bed in the back. He’s thrown down blankets and plenty of pillows. Louis and Harry have shared a bed on more than one occasion, so it shouldn’t be awkward to sleep like this for the next few weeks. Plus, if they accidentally cuddle in the small space, it certainly wouldn’t be the worst thing.  
~  
“So, where do we go first?” Louis asks, his bare feet up on the dashboard as he eats through a bag of chips.

“I really don’t know,” Harry says honestly. “Figured we would just drive, stop whenever we need to or if we see something we like. I’ll drive until I get way too tired, and we’ll pull over somewhere and sleep.”

“Sounds awfully unorganized to me,” Louis says, and Harry can tell he’s smirking, even without looking at him.

“That’s how I like to live. Wild and free.”

“Alright, wild boy, let’s see what happens.”

Harry smiles and keeps his eyes ahead. “Figured we’ll cruise through Washington, see what’s around that we don’t know about. who knows, maybe we’ll find some real hidden gems.”

“That actually sounds pretty sick,” Louis chews thoughtfully on his salt and vinegar chips. “Like, neither of us are from around here, and maybe there’s really amazing stuff we know nothing about.”

“Exactly,” Harry agrees happily. “I’m really glad you decided to come with me, Lou. I’d probably chicken out of this whole thing if I didn’t have you with me. Probably would have just driven home and sat on my ass all summer long, sighing forlornly about missing my roommate.”

“So dramatic,” Louis laughs, and Harry absolutely loves making Louis laugh. It’s so bright and loud, and Harry wishes he was looking at him right now so he could see the way the skin around his eyes crinkle and the blue seems to shine brighter. “I would have probably been working at a Starbucks serving coffee to angry middle-aged men who are stuck in their stuffy offices all day and have pit stains on their dress shirts because it’s fuckin’ 100 degrees out and they’re stuck in their business attire. Sounds mundane and awful, so thanks for saving my ass there.”

“You put a lot of thought into that thought.”

“My dad is one of them,” Louis says simply.

“Ah, that makes more sense.”

“Speaking of jobs, how the hell do you have the money to pay for this trip? Plus pay for me on top of it? I barely have enough money to feed myself, as you already know.”

Harry barks out a laugh at that. Louis will blow through his meal plan so quick, then try and mooch off of Harry’s remaining money instead. Harry, of course, lets him. “Truthfully?”

“The truth would be nice, yeah.”

Harry sighs deeply. “I have a…fairly large inheritance from my dad. He died three years ago. Figured I could do something fun with it.”

“Oh, Harry, I’m so sorry to hear that. I just figured maybe he wasn’t…in the picture, or something. I didn’t know he was-you know. I’m so sorry,” Louis says softly, looking over at Harry and putting his arm on Harry’s bicep.

“Nah, don’t be. He wasn’t the greatest guy, anyway. We didn’t get along. His oil tycoon was much more important than his family. I’m really fine without him.”

“He’s your dad, though,” Louis says softly, almost to himself.

“That doesn’t really mean anything when he says such awful things to you,” Harry says lowly.

“Like what?” Louis asks quietly, almost afraid to breach the topic, like it might be too personal.

“Stupid stuff,” Harry says gruffly. “Said I’ll never take over his business because I’ll always be a child. Said I’m way too immature to handle his business and he would rather die than let me take over it, which, ironically enough, actually happened. Probably karma, I think. He always would tell me and anyone who would listen that I was a stubborn brat who would never grow up. I’d never be successful because I’d always be a stupid child incapable of maturity. I’m proving that bastard wrong by going to school and doing my best. I don’t need his company. I can make it without him.”

“You can,” Louis says, and he sounds so confident it makes Harry warm inside. “I know you’ll be great, and you don’t need anyone to make you great. You’re capable of that all on your own, Haz.”

“Thanks, Lou. Means a lot to me,” Harry says, and he means it. Louis is able to make him feel good about himself in ways he’s never known before.

“You’re sure you’re okay?” Louis asks, pulling him out of his thoughts.

“Yeah, trust me, Lou. Sometimes just being a person’s biological father isn’t enough. Blood isn’t always strong enough. My mom is so incredible, and I have a great sister, so it’s not like I have no one. They take good care of me, always have. They raised me to be polite and respect others and I think I came out pretty well,” Harry says, tightening his hands on the steering wheel a little. He’s always a bit uncomfortable when he has to talk about his father.

“You came out better than pretty well,” Louis says softly, and Harry can tell Louis is looking at him. He spares a glance over and smiles.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. They did a wonderful job, and I plan to tell them just that next time I see them. They’re amazing people, and it’s no wonder you are, too.”

“My mom will absolutely swoon. She’ll probably like you more than me,” Harry grins.

“Maybe she’ll make us more of those cookies to take back to school. Those were incredible.”

“She loves baking,” Harry says. “Probably why I like it so much, too.”

“Yeah? You’ll have to make me something sometime. I haven’t gotten to experience these baking skills.”

“I’ll make sure it happen soon enough.”

“You better, or else I’ll find a new roommate.”

“Ouch. You’d never be able to live with anyone else. You’d be crawling back to me within a day,” Harry challenges.

“You have lots of flaws, Styles. With your snoring and leaving the window open even when it’s fuckin’ freezing outside.”

“It gets hot, and I don’t snore!”

“I’m going to record you, I swear. Sounds like a bear or something.”

“You love it.”

“It’s a little endearing,” Louis admits with a smile.

“A lot endearing,” Harry corrects. “Don’t lie.”

Louis giggles and pokes his ribs playfully. Harry thinks he’s in love with this boy.  
~  
“Are we planning to listen to this music the entire fuckin’ road trip?” Louis whines, slumped against his chair.

“Yes! I spent a lot of time creating the perfect playlist for this trip and I’ll be damned if it goes to waste, Lewis.”

“They’re terrible songs, Haz! You’re indie music or whatever isn’t popular for good reasons. Why can’t we just listen to the radio like normal people?”

“Because the radio is full of trashy music that’s going to play the same eight songs over and over again,” Harry tells him pointedly. “I’m doing you a favor. You’re welcome.”

Harry knows Louis is rolling his eyes without even having to look at him. “And instead making me suffer in another way.”

“Shut up,” Harry laughs. “It’s part of the whole experience. Every good road trip has a playlist.”

“Sure thing, big guy. You look tired. We should find a place to stop for the night,” Louis says through a yawn. “Before it gets too dark.”

The sun is just starting to set, and Louis is probably right. They should set up camp for themselves before they can’t see anything and things get ugly.

He hums in agreement and keeps driving until he sees a campground. Since they’ve basically been seeing a whole lot of nothing but land in forest, it’s no surprise there’s a campsite. He turns into it and Louis looks over at him.

“A campsite?”

“Yes, a campsite, Louis.”

“Aren’t we staying at like…I don’t know, a hotel? There was no camping involved when I signed on, pal. I do not camp.”

“Guess you do now,” Harry grins wickedly, parking the car. “Don’t be such a baby. We’ll stay in the van to sleep.”

“What if a bear tries to eat me?” Louis asks, his voice serious.

“I’ll make sure he eats me first,” Harry promises, just as serious.

Louis pouts, crossing his arms over his chest. “Camping is stupid.”

“Camping is great! C’mon, tomorrow we’ll stop somewhere for marshmallows and stuff and we can make a fire and make s’mores! It’ll be great!” Harry says happily.

“Fine, but only for the s’mores! And if there’s one animal that comes near me, we’re leaving.”

“If any animal tries to eat you, we’ll get a hotel. Is that fair?”

“I guess,” Louis sighs dramatically. “With your stupid cliché road trip ideas. I don’t know why you’re my best friend.”

“Because you love my cliché ideas,” Harry smiles. “C’mon, let’s eat those sandwiches we picked up, I’m starving.”  
~  
It turns out Harry is very good at convincing Louis this is fun. Unless, Louis just actually likes to camp and Harry has nothing to do with it. Harry’s hoping it’s the first one.

They’re lying on a blanket just outside of their van, staring up at the night sky, bundled up and shoulders brushing. The sound of wind and the usual sounds of animals surrounds them, either too far from other campers or all the others already asleep for the night.

“Getting chilly,” Louis says, shivering a little as he tries to wrap the blankets closer to himself.

“C’mere,” Harry murmurs, pulling Louis into his arms and pressing him to his chest. Louis snuggles in easily, tucking his face into Harry’s neck and letting out a little _burr_. Harry feels warmth spread through his body from his chest all the way down to his fingers and toes. They’ve cuddled somewhat, like Louis’ head on Harry’s shoulder, but now is different. Their bodies are totally plastered together, Louis’ breath on Harry’s neck and lips so close to his skin. Harry wants to stay just like this until he dies, maybe.

“Never noticed how many stars were in the sky,” Louis says quietly, his voice breaking Harry’s train of thought. Louis’ mouth is so close to his throat he can practically feel his lips moving against him.

“I took astronomy once,” Harry says, their voices soft and gentle. It’s so quiet out, so peaceful, and talking too loudly would ruin the whole thing. “I learned a few things.”

“Mm? Anything you recognize?”

“Mhm. See that one?” Harry points. “Sort of like a dragon tail? That’s called Draco, obviously because it looks like a dragon.”

“That makes sense,” Louis smiles. “Only one I know of are the big and little dippers. Don’t know shit about stars, but they’re gorgeous.”

“Yeah, amazing how many there are. Wonder how many nights it would take to count them all,” Harry says absentmindedly. It’s so easy to be at peace when he’s with Louis by his side, in his arms. Everything seems brighter, calmer, _better_. He doesn’t want to ever give up this feeling.

“Infinity, probably,” Louis murmurs. “Too many to count.”

“Yeah, way too many.”

“You know, Harry,” Louis starts in a whisper, taking a deep breath and placing his hand over Harry’s beating heart. “I just wanted to say…”

Harry holds his breath, ready for something big, but before Louis even gets to say anything, rain pours from the sky. Someone up there must have it out for Harry.

“Shit!” Louis cries, jumping out of Harry’s arms and pulling the blanket over his head. Harry follows, doing the same thing and throwing open the back doors of the van.

“Go, get in before you get sick,” Harry says, putting a hand on Louis’ lower back to guide him. Louis crawls in, shivering from the dampness and watches Harry crawl in beside him.

“Good timing, huh?” Louis laughs, almost nervously.

“Yeah,” Harry huffs. “You still cold?”

“Yeah,” Louis nods. “Rain didn’t help.”

“Here, lemme cuddle you to warm you up,” Harry offers, pulling him in again. It might be more for himself than for Louis, at this point.

“Thanks,” Louis murmurs, getting comfortable again.

“What did you want to tell me?” Harry asks, because he might actually die if he doesn’t find out what Louis got so serious about. Louis doesn’t get serious often.

“Oh,” Louis coughs. There’s a long pause. Harry tries to tell his heart to chill out. “Just…wanted to say thanks for bringing me on this trip, especially for free. You didn’t have to do all this, but I appreciate it and it’s been great so far.”

“You’re welcome, Lou,” Harry says quietly. “No one I’d rather take with me.”

Harry falls asleep with his favorite person in his arms, the sound of rain pelting outside, and everything is perfect.  
~  
_May 16th, Oregon_

Harry sees from the corner of his eye Louis drumming his fingers on his thighs to the beat of one of the songs of The Playlist. He smiles to himself, knowing that by the end of this trip, Louis will actually like these songs, and might already like them. Louis just likes to give Harry hell, he thinks.

“Any plans for today?” Louis asks.

“No plans for any day, Lou,” Harry grins. “Go with the flow. We’ll stop when we see something worth stopping for.”

“Sorry, I’m just not used to this at all. I’m used to having a plan and usually sticking with it, not just…going with the flow.”

“Well, I guess I’ll teach you how to do it, then,” Harry says, and it sounds far more sexual than he intends. He has to cough to not splutter.

“I’ll hold you to it, then,” Louis hums. “Ever been to Oregon?”

“Never,” Harry says. “California is so big and full of so much stuff that I don’t bother traveling outside of it much. That’s why I wanted to do this; so I could finally get out and see things besides California.”

“Those people that travel the 50 states are cool, aren’t they? I’d love to do that. See Alaska and the Northern Lights, and go to Hawaii and go visit volcanoes. Obviously can’t roadtrip those, but those would be sick, you know?”

“Definitely,” Harry agrees. “Maybe that’ll be us; we can make our way around the country together. You can show me the east coast and I’ll show you California and we can discover everything else together. I mean, maybe.”

“That would be great,” Louis grins. “Go somewhere different every summer. Explore the other places people wouldn’t think to go to. Every state deserves a fair shot.”

“I think there’s some hidden gems in every state, and you just need to have the right eye for them,” Harry says.

“I hope you have some of those eyes, because I don’t think I do. I’ve found some real dumps back in the city that I regret ever going to. Maybe I’m too trusting.”

Harry laughs. “Don’t worry, we’ll find some good places, I can feel it.”  
“I’d be happy with finding a McDonalds right now, I’m starving.”

“Same,” Harry agrees. “Could definitely go for a sausage and cheese McMuffin. There has to be one around here somewhere.”

“Better be, Styles, or else I’m leaving this road trip. I need my morning breakfast,” Louis threatens.

“That’s a bit harsh, especially considering you would probably die out here. Walking unknown roads, lots of forest…I don’t think you’d make it five minutes.”

“I resent that!” Louis shouts. “All I’d have to do is flash them some leg and I’d have truckers lined up ready to pick me up. Don’t you worry your pretty little head about me, I’d be just fine.”

“Oh, excuse me, then,” Harry laughs. “I didn’t consider that possibility.”

“Of course you didn’t. I’m much craftier than you, much more clever. I can get myself out of all sorts of situations, really.”

“You’ll have to teach me your tricks then, I guess. Teach me how to be as crafty as you, Oh Wise One.”

“Only if you’re teachable,” Louis shrugs. “Some can’t learn the art. Some just aren’t capable of it.”

“Ah, didn’t know it was so strict.”

“Of course it is,” Louis says easily. “Anyways, that just means I can leave this road trip whenever if you happen to do something wrong, like not get me Mickey D’s.”

“Jeez, okay, fine. I didn’t know your love for food was more than your love for me.”

“Really? I thought I made that clear,” Louis grins. “Now you know.”

Harry is so, so in love with him, and it becomes more apparent with every second they spend together. Now that they’re alone, spending so much time in one space, no others to invade their space, it becomes even more obvious that not, these feelings are not platonic. It’s nice, just the two of them. Normally, people are always filling in and out of their room, asking for favors or just coming to bother them. It’s so nice to just sit with Louis, have his undivided attention without worrying about class and homework. So, yeah, Harry is going to take advantage of this time, and hopefully, Louis will feel the same way about him. Maybe he just needs some alone time with Harry to notice.

Or, he hopes, at least.  
~  
Harry does find Louis a McDonald’s not long after, and pays for him to get whatever he wants. They each get their McMuffins and get a bunch of hash browns to share. Harry scarfs his down but Louis has always eaten slower, taking his time through his sandwich. Harry should probably do that, too, but.

“Look how cute that diner is,” Louis says. “Like, fits in perfectly with such a small town, you know?”

“Wanna stop in?” Harry asks. They’ve been driving for a while, and not surprisingly, Oregon has a whole lot of nothing for miles on end. It’s been boring from what they’ve seen since driving past the border, so they might as well try what they can. This was exactly the stuff Harry wanted to do, anyways: find little, quaint places that aren’t flashy, aren’t five-star restaurants that everyone wants to try. He likes little places that no one knows about, because he finds that they have the best food, best atmosphere, and best people. They have nothing to be stuck-up about, they’re just genuine, down-to-earth people who have a passion for food.

“Yeah, they have a sign in the window that says “Best Pie in Oregon”, so I obviously have to see if that’s true or not,” Louis explains simply. “Can’t go through Oregon without the best pie, now can we?”

“No, we can’t,” Harry agrees, turning into the parking lot. It’s the lunch rush, but there still aren’t many people. Granted, it’s a pretty tiny town, and the occupancy must not be very high.

They walk into the diner, bells chiming as the door opens. An older woman smiles brightly at them. She looks well past the retirement age, but she still seems happy, like she’s got a lot of high spirit still left in her. Her grey hair is tied in a bun, thick glasses perched on her nose and a light blue dress on with a white apron over it. It’s definitely a cliché, and Harry loves that. That’s what he wanted for this road trip, anyway.

“Hello, boys! Welcome to Granny’s Diner. Take a seat anywhere you want,” she says with a grin.

Louis looks over at Harry and smiles. “Wanna sit at the bar? Be able to see all those nice pies and make a good decision?”

“Sounds like a good idea,” Harry agrees. They go and sit in front of the older woman, whose name tag reads _Betty_. Louis smile charming at her. God, Harry loves him.

“Which pie do you recommend?” Louis asks, folding his hands in front of him and surveying the different baked goods on display. “Everything looks delicious.”

“Bake it all myself,” she puts her hand on her hip and smiles. “So they’re all good, but I do get a lot of compliments on the cherry pie.”

“Ooh, so you’re the baker! I’d love to try the cherry pie.”

“Make that two slices,” Harry chimes in. “And two coffees.”

She smiles at them both, turning around to grab the cherry from the display.

“Don’t get a whole lot of pie in the city,” Louis says. “More cheesecake than anything. And Italian pastries, when I feel like stopping by Little Italy.”

“New York boy?” Betty asks, and Louis seems a little bit surprised that she was listening.

“Born and raised, yeah,” Louis smiles.

“Whatcha doing all the way over here in Oregon for?” she asks.

“We go to school in Washington, and this one here,” Louis shoves his thumb in Harry’s direction. “Wanted to take a road trip down the coast. So, that’s what we’re doing.”

“Well, we love out-of-towners here. Thanks for stopping in,” she says.

“Told him we couldn’t survive on fast food the whole summer,” Harry smiles.

“Because pie is so dietetic,” Louis rolls his eyes.

“Sure tastes better than fast food, I can promise you that,” Betty says, spraying a large dollop of whipped cream on both pies and putting them in front of both boys. “Eat up, I’ll get your coffees now.”

She sends a wink and walks away to the coffee pot. Louis pulls out his camera from his backpack and takes an artsy looking picture of the pies. Harry furrows his eyebrows.

“What are you doing?”

“I want to document our trip together. I want to remember all the stops we make and the food we eat and all that. Maybe make a book of it for us?”

Harry almost melts into a puddle before all of the customers of Granny’s Diner. Louis is the cutest cutie to exist. He’s so endearing and lovely and wonderful and Harry could marry him right now, honestly.

He probably won’t, though. At least, not right this second. Not until Louis falls madly in love with him and Harry gets down on one knee and asks him properly with a ring. Okay, he needs to focus. He’s probably been staring at Louis for far too long without saying anything. That could be weird.

“I love that idea, Lou.”

“Thanks,” Louis grins. “Alright, I’m ready to dig in when you are.”

They pick up their forks and take big first bites, moaning appreciatively.

“This is incredible,” Harry tells Betty when she comes over with the coffee and a small container of milk.

“Thanks, dear,” she grins. “My grandmother’s recipe. Been passing it down for years. Glad you boys like it. You two together?”

Harry chokes on his sip of coffee. He’s about to tell her that no, they aren’t dating, just best friends. Well, Louis is his best friend that he happens to be madly in love with. But dating? Not so much, unfortunately.

Before he even gets a chance at denial, Louis is rubbing his upper back and grinning at Betty. “Yeah, we are.”

Okay, what?

“You make a very cute couple,” Betty smiles warmly at them. “How about these pies are on me, boys? Came all this way, it’s the least I can do.”

“Oh, you don’t have to do that, really. We can pay for it,” Harry assures her, but she shakes her head.

“I won’t accept your money, boys. Don’t worry about it,” she smiles. “Just send me an invite to your wedding.”

Harry coughs again, but Louis just rubs his hand between his shoulder blades and grins at her. “’course, Betty.”

She winks at them again and gives them some privacy. Louis takes his hand away and takes another bite of his pie with a grin.

“Sorry, thought that might be fun. She’s just so cute and I didn’t want to disappoint her,” Louis shrugs.

“No, that’s…that’s okay. Got free pie out of it, I guess,” Harry laughs, albeit a little nervously.

“Good free pie,” Louis corrects, pointing his fork at him. “This is delicious.”

“Best pie in Oregon,” Harry smirks.

Louis’ eyes crinkle. “Definitely.”  
~  
Louis asks Betty if there’s anything good to do around the area. He figures since they’re here in this quaint little town, they might as well explore. The pie was enough to leave a lasting impression, so they have a good feeling about the rest.

Betty tells them just down the road are some shops and there’s a movie theater in the area. Only a few miles out, there’s a campsite, which they’re grateful for. At least they can spend the day in town and not have to drive far to find a place to sleep. Plus, Harry promised Louis they’d make s’mores, so.

They thank Betty and she even reaches out to hug them. Louis’ charm must have made Harry seem more charming, because stuff like this doesn’t happen to Harry, not without Louis.

After getting into the van, they drive down the road until the see a small strip mall. This town must not have been renovated in years, because everything seems so old, but in a charming way. The stores seem all vintage, and Harry can’t wait to see what they have. He loves vintage shops, loves how everything is unique and he won’t end up with the same exact wardrobe as every other student on campus.

“Looks like these are right up your alley,” Louis smirks at him. He knows Harry so well, there’s no denying that.

“Are you trying to mock me?” Harry asks.

“Not at all,” Louis holds his hands up in surrender. “Just think we should go in because it looks pretty sick.”

“Really? You wouldn’t mind?”

“Mind? No, Haz, this is for both of us, you know? We have to do things we both like to keep each other happy. Plus, the prices are probably great. We might be able to find some cool stuff for the summer, or even outfits for school in August. Maybe you can help me wear things that aren’t Adidas or Vans and shit. I should probably branch out and wear things other than athletic clothes, black jeans, and t-shirts.

“Thatta boy. I’ll teach you my ways,” Harry wiggles his eyebrows. “Let’s do this.”

Louis rolls his eyes with a laugh and they pull in. Harry opens Louis’ door for him and Louis puts his hand on Harry’s lower back as a thank you. No fucking wonder Betty thought they were dating. They basically are, Louis just…doesn’t know yet.

The shop is fairly neat for being a vintage store. The one by their university is always a mess with clothes everywhere and random things strewn about. This one, though, it feels like everything has a place.

“C’mon, let’s find some ‘hidden gems’, as you’ve been calling everything,” Louis smiles, tugging on his hand. Yeah, they’re totally dating. Everyone would assume so, besides Louis. He’ll figure it out.

“Look at this! Try this on, Haz, this would look great on you,” Louis says excitedly, pulling a grey cardigan from a hanger and handing it over to Harry.

Harry pulls it on over his t-shirt and poses for Louis. “What do you think?”

“Looks so good on you, Harry. Look like you belong in one of those European magazines. You should buy it,” Louis urges him. “Pair of black jeans and your brown suede boots? You’ll be a total knock out.”

“Alright, you’ve convinced me,” Harry sighs dramatically. “Let me find something for you.”

“Go ahead,” Louis motions with his hand. “Blow me away.”

Harry would very much like to just blow Louis, actually.

He tries to shake that thought off for now. Getting hard in public isn’t exactly ideal. So, he looks through racks, humming at his options while Louis waits beside him.

“Ah!” Harry says, pulling out a pair of light blue suspenders. “These…with this shirt.”

He hands over a thick, off-white button up and Louis takes them easily. “Yeah? Suspenders?”

“Very vintage,” Harry nods. “Plus, they make your butt look incredible when they pull your pants up in that way, trust me.”

“Can’t say no to that,” Louis grins. “I can’t pass up an opportunity to make my ass look even better than it normally does.”

Harry doesn’t think it could possible get any better than it is, and he might explode seeing Louis with suspenders on. At least his death would be worth it.

They travel through the store, piling clothes into their hands and giggling as they try on ridiculous hats. They snap pictures of each other in clothes, making it more of a photo shoot than anything. Harry sneaks a few (a lot) of pictures of Louis while he’s not looking. Louis throws a black fedora onto Harry’s head and Harry laughs, but Louis is serious.

“That actually looks quite charming on you. It seems to suit you,” Louis says thoughtfully.

“Yeah? Really?” Harry asks.

“Buy it,” Louis shrugs. “I like it.”

“Alright, sure.”

Louis smiles at him and continues to search through the rows of clothes. Harry could probably watch him forever without getting bored. Louis is so fun to watch, the way he concentrates on everything he’s doing, with his tongue poking between his lips, eyebrows creased slightly and popping his hip out. He’s breathtaking.

They finally finish up, piles of stuff in their hands just because they can. Harry treats Louis to it, knowing he doesn’t have much money. He’s got six other siblings and the only reason he was able to go to college was from the large scholarship he received from them. It wouldn’t be fair to invite Louis on this trip and have him struggle to pay for things, especially when he won’t be working because of it. It’s really the least Harry can do for him. Louis is always very careful about his spending, declines going out to bars often because he can’t afford the drinks and the cab rides. He deserves to have fun, to have nice stuff, and Harry wants to spoil him just a little bit. Or a lot, whatever.

“Checking out, boys?” a man asks. He’s on the older side, as well, and Harry is starting to wonder if all the young people move out of this town to do something bigger with their lives. Maybe all the older folks stay, and this is where their kids and grandkids come for Christmas and Easter and Thanksgiving so they can spend time with them. He has a feeling there isn’t much around for people his age, or work that they can grow and succeed with, so they move away to bigger towns.

“Yeah, you have a great store here,” Louis smiles. Charming the pants off of everyone they meet, honestly.

“Why, thank you,” he grins. “It was my father’s store, handed it down to me when he got too old to care for it. My own son didn’t want it, though. He’s a big fancy lawyer in California. So, it’s just me.”

“Well, I’m sorry to hear that, but you’re doing a great job,” Louis tells him.

“Thank you,” the man smiles warmly. “So, you two dating? Make quite a cute couple.”

Harry can’t believe this. He lets Louis take the reigns on it again. Harry is afraid to open his mouth about this.

“Yup, he’s my boyfriend,” Louis smiles, wrapping his arm around Harry’s waist and giving it a squeeze. “Spoiling me, as usual.”

“Well I wish you boys all the best. Enjoy all this stuff, you have some great picks.”

“Yeah, I think so. Thanks for everything!”

“Nice meeting you,” Harry smiles and waves, him and Louis picking up their bags and heading out.

“You too!” the man calls to them.

They walk out of the door, Louis giggling. “Thanks for all that, Haz.”

“Yeah, of course. No problem,” Harry gives him a tight smile. His heart is still racing. Other people thinking they’re dating when Harry so desperately wants that…it’s a bit hard to handle.  
~  
They go to other stores, making it down the whole strip. Louis takes funny photos of them trying on clothes and the scenery around them.

“So, wanna go to that movie theater Betty told us about? Could be fun,” Louis shrugs.

“Sure, we don’t really have anything else to do,” Harry says. “We can grab dinner after.”

“Yeah, I’d love that. And we have to get our s’mores stuff! You promised!” Louis brightens.

“Yes, I did,” Harry grins. “Don’t worry, I didn’t forget. We’ll do that after dinner, I promise.”

“Good,” Louis grins. “Then lets go.”

There are very few movies playing, none of them at all recent.

“We can see _The Wizard of Oz_ ,” Louis suggests. “That’s always a good one.”

“A classic,” Harry agrees. “Sounds good to me.”

“Good,” Louis smiles. They dropped off their stuff in the van, now empty handed save for Louis’ camera around his neck, taking pictures of Harry at random times, sometimes selfies of himself and the views around them.

Harry buys the tickets to the movies then head over to the small concession stand. Louis pouts about them not having slushies, so they settle for sharing a soda.

“What do you want to eat?” Harry asks.

“Popcorn, of course.”

“Of course,” Harry grins. “Anything else?”

“Don’t you know me at all? I need M&M’s to throw into the popcorn,” Louis says like it’s obviously, which, it should be. They’ve had popcorn enough times together for Harry to know Louis needs to have his chocolatey fix included.

“Right, sorry, slipped my mind.”

“Not a very good boyfriend,” Louis chastises, holding back a grin. He knows it’s for the teenage boy behind the counter, wanting everyone to think they’re dating now. The teenager rolls his eyes and hands over their snacks and the change. He’s either homophobic or really doesn’t care about people in relationships. Both are easily possible.

Harry tries to ignore the way his heart rate picks up, though. “Sorry.”

“S’alright. C’mon, let’s go get good seats.”

Louis takes the M&M’s and soda so Harry can carry the popcorn and Harry follows Louis into the theater. He honestly can’t help staring at the way Louis’ butt moves in his tight jeans, how round and plump it is from playing soccer. Harry wants to know what it looks like bare. He hasn’t been fortunate enough to catch a glimpse in their dorm while he gets changed.

They sit somewhere in the middle of the theater, taking their seats in the red cushioned chairs.

“Feel like I haven’t been to a movie in so long,” Louis says, ripping open the package of M&M’s. “What’s the last one we went to go see?”

“I have no idea,” Harry says, taking a sip of their soda. “Probably _Get Hard_ , I think, when we went with Liam, Niall, and Zayn.”

“Right,” Louis gives a nod, pouring the colorful candy into the popcorn. “Wasn’t very good.”

“At least we already know this one is good,” Harry smiles, taking a handful of popcorn.

“That’s true. Todo is the best part.”

“Oh, totally. But the Lion is pretty great, too. He was my favorite as a kid.”

“Yeah?” Louis asks, sounding somewhat fond.

“Yeah. I was afraid of a lot of things, I guess. So I related with him a lot. Never liked the Tin Man because it almost felt like my dad. Like, he didn’t have a heart, and that’s what I thought was wrong with my dad, why he was so mean.”

Louis looks like he wants to take pity, Harry can see it in his eyes. He wants to tell Louis to not bother, because he hates that, but instead, Louis gives a small smile. “My sister used to tell me I was the Scarecrow because I didn’t have a brain.”

Harry laughs, grateful that Louis is able to turn a dark moment into one full of happiness. “That’s so mean.”

“I told her she looked like the Wicked Witch after, so it was a fair fight,” Louis smirks.

“Very impressive comeback,” Harry nods seriously.

“I’d like to think so, until she cried and got my mom and she yelled at me for it,” Louis rolls his eyes. “Sisters are awful.”

“I agree,” Harry says. “The worst.”

They watch the movie, hands reaching into the popcorn and bumping constantly. More often than not, their hands brush when they both go for the soda, giggling quietly so not to disturb the other four people in the theater. They whisper stupid comments into each other’s ears, just to get the other to laugh.

After the movie, they giggle on their way out, throwing out their garbage and walking to the car.

“I forgot how much fun it is to watch movies with you,” Louis says.

“How could you forget? We always watch movies together,” Harry says, and it’s true. If there’s ever a night where they want to avoid responsibility or don’t feel like going out, they stay in and watch a movie together. It’s usually more fun than actually going out, anyway.

“Usually someone is with us and complaining about our talking, though,” Louis points out, and Harry hums. Liam can’t stand it when they talk during movies.

“Hope you have enough appetite for dinner and s’mores.”

“I can always make more room,” Louis assures, patting his tummy.  
~  
They find a small place for dinner, a place that probably qualifies as fancy in this tiny town. Harry orders them steak to celebrate making it to Oregon. Louis thinks it’s stupid, but appreciates the steak anyway.

After, they go to a grocery store to get their needed ingredients for s’mores and drive down the road to find the campsite Betty referred them to. They find it with ease, pulling into the lot. It seems nicer than the one the night before, like it’s used more often. Harry spots a tree house down by the river and it’s all very pretty.

When Louis steps out of the car, he takes more pictures while Harry gathers their s’mores equipment and a blanket for them to sit on. They settle close to the tree house and Louis continues to take pictures, instructing Harry to set up the fire before Louis manages to burn himself, Harry, or the whole forest down. That sounds plausible, so Harry obeys.

“We should check out that tree house,” Louis suggests, putting his camera down and yanking on his sweatshirt now that the sun is going down and the air has a chill to it.

“Yeah, sure,” Harry says. “Looks really cool.”

Louis grins and walks ahead, Harry following behind. Louis climbs up the makeshift rope ladder, and Harry will admit that it looks sketchy, but does it for Louis. He’d walk over fire for Louis, honestly.

Louis reaches the top and crawls into the wooden house, and Harry stares shameless at Louis’ ass as he does it. He follows behind him and can’t stand to full height without banging his head. Louis giggles at him, looking out the small window.

“This is so cool. I wonder who put this here?” he inquires, almost to himself. It’s not very far off the ground, due to it being a much shorter tree than the ones around. It looks over a river, though, and it’s a gorgeous sight, especially with Louis standing there in Harry’s vision of sight. He can’t stop the smile from taking over his face.

“It’s beautiful,” Harry agrees, his voice soft. Louis turns to look at him, his eyes sparkling bright in the light of the sunset.

“I liked pretending to be your boyfriend,” Louis says quietly.

“I liked that, too,” Harry admits. He hopes to god this is going where he thinks it’s going. He sits besides Louis on the wooden floor and puts a hand on Louis’ knee. “A lot.”

Harry can see Louis’ cheeks tint light pink and a small smile creeping onto his face. Louis blinks up at him and licks his lips.

“Think everyone believed us.”

“We’re convincing,” Harry tells him.

“Would it…be so bad?” Louis asks, then swallows, his throat bobbing with it.“If…if we were?”

Harry grins. This is exactly what he’s been waiting for, exactly the right moment for this. He leans in, one hand cupping Louis’ cheek and stroking underneath his eye. Louis’ eyes flutter shut, so Harry does the same, but before their lips can touch, there’s a loud creaking, and part of the floor falling from beneath Louis. His leg falls through and Harry’s first reaction is panic.

“Guess this thing is not made for grown adults,” Harry laughs, but Louis groans in pain. Harry looks down and sees rigid wood poking into Louis’ thigh. “Alright, um, okay, let me just…”

Harry doesn’t really have a plan, but he wraps Louis’ arms around his neck. Louis lets out a whimper as Harry tries to pull his leg free. Thankfully, it doesn’t take much, and it’s only with minimal complaints from Louis. Harry eases down the ladder first, then waits with his arms open for Louis to come down. Louis does so slowly, and Harry notices the rips in his jeans, but there doesn’t seem to be any blood, so, there’s a win.

Harry pulls Louis into his arms once he’s back on the ground. “Jesus Christ, you scared me. I thought that whole thing was going to collapse.”

“It easily may have,” Louis laughs. “Probably older than we are.”

“Probably,” Harry chuckles. “Are you alright? Anything hurt?”

“Nah, I’m fine, Harry,” Louis assures with a smile. “Just got a pair of ruined jeans, is all. Could be much worse.”

“You’re right about that.”

A few moments of silence pass before Louis puts his hands on Harry’s hips. “Now, uh…where did we leave off up there?”

Harry grins wide, bringing his hands up to Louis’ face. “I think…we were right about…”

Before finishing his sentence, he presses his lips to Louis’. He can feel Louis smile, and Harry can’t help but doing the same. It’s not a perfect kiss, what with their teeth in the way, smiles making it difficult, but it’s perfect for them.

When they break apart, Louis presses another kiss to his mouth, then lays his forehead on Harry’s collarbone, hiding a smile in his shirt. Harry smiles, putting his hand on the back of Louis’ neck and playing with the hair there.

“How was that?” Harry whispers into his ear, kissing behind it.

“Good,” Louis murmurs into his shirt. “Really…really good.”

“Look at me, Lou,” he asks softly, so Louis does, a blush on his face. Louis is never, ever shy about anything. He’s always outgoing, the life of the party, never afraid of a challenge or even making a fool of himself. Suddenly, he seems small and vulnerable. “Was that okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I did,” Louis says quickly, not wanting Harry to think it wasn’t good. “IT was…amazing. I just feel like I’ve been waiting for that for so long, and it actually happened.”

“You have?” Harry asks, shocked. “How long?”

“Probably since I met you,” Louis tries to chuckle. “I’ve had such a crush on you from day one, but you never made a move, and I thought you probably just didn’t like me like that, so I was okay with being just friends. I didn’t want to be humiliated by making a move and being rejected, because when it comes to that stuff I’m not very good. I let boys come to me. I don’t like to put myself out there very much, but god, I’m glad you did that.”

“Jesus Christ,” Harry laughs to himself. “I’ve felt the same thing about you. I just didn’t think you were interested.”

“We are so stupid,” Louis laughs, putting his hand over his mouth. “I can’t believe it.”

“So stupid,” Harry agrees with a dopey grin. “We could have been kissing since August.”

“Probably,” Louis giggles. “Well, I guess we have a lot of time to make up for, then?”

“Oh, definitely,” Harry agrees easily. “Lots of alone time for us catch up.”

“Very true,” Louis says before they share another kiss. Harry’s head is swimming. He feels like he’s underwater in the best way possible, sort of like floating in a pool while your ears are under and things don’t seem to matter in that one moment, like you’re separate from the world. But, Louis is here, grounding him, reminding him he is here, is part of this world, but for right now, it can be just them in this random campsite in Oregon. It can just be them for the summer.

“We making these s’mores or what, babe?” Louis’ voice cuts through Harry’s thoughts. Babe. _Babe_.

“Babe?” Harry grins. “We’re doing pet names, now?”

“Hey, I waited a long time for these, so I’m going to use them all I want, _pumpkin_ ,” Louis raises his eyebrow with a smirk, emphasizing his last word. Harry throws his head back with a laugh.

“Sorry, sweetcheeks. I love the pet names.”

“Good, sunshine.”

“Let’s make s’mores, then, honey.”

“Let’s, muffin.”

Harry shakes his head, his hair falling over his face. He’s so in love with Louis, and he wants to tell him, but technically, they started dating three minutes ago, so, maybe he should wait.

They set up a little camp next to the fire Harry made, blanket on the ground and all their s’mores stuff ready beside them. Harry sits with his legs open, motioning for Louis to sit between them. Louis does so willingly with a grin, easing his back into Harry’s chest. He reaches over Harry’s leg for the bag of marshmallows and Harry gets the box of graham crackers open. It’s a team effort to get everything ready, their bodies close together with shared smiles.

Louis decides to roast the marshmallows while Harry sets up the graham crackers and chocolate.

“Do you like your marshmallows lightly toasted or basically burnt?” Louis asks, putting marshmallows on a stick.

“Burnt, please, or else the marshmallow isn’t as gooey and doesn’t melt the chocolate. What’s the fun in that?”

“That’s exactly how I feel!” Louis says enthusiastically, crinkles by his eyes deep as he smiles. “What’s the point of toasting it if it won’t get gooey?”

“Absolutely no point,” Harry agrees. “Would have had to dump you if you felt differently.”

“So…that means we’re…actually…dating?” Louis asks hesitantly, his eyes focused on the marshmallows.

“Well, I’d like us to be actually dating, but if you don’t want to actual date me,” Harry says with a teasing tone.

“I do,” Louis assures him. “I was just making sure we’re both on the same page.”

“We definitely are,” Harry assures him, pressing his lips to the back of his neck. Louis giggles, wiggling closer to Harry’s body, if that’s even possible. Harry kisses behind Louis’ ear and nuzzles his nose in his hair. They’ve been renting motel rooms by the hour for showers, so they weren’t disgusting, and Louis smelled fresh and clean from his earlier shower. Again, the words _I love you_ want to bubble out of his mouth, but he doesn’t let them.

“Here,” Louis says softly, pulling the marshmallows away from the fire. Harry holds out the prepared graham crackers, and Louis brings the toasted marshmallows over them, Harry squishing it between crackers. He lifts it to his mouth and takes a messy bite, then feeds a bite to Louis. Louis giggles and opens his mouth for it. He turns his head to get a better look at Harry.

“Delicious,” he says softly. “You’ve made a mess, though.”

Before Harry can respond, Louis’ hand is on his neck and his mouth on his cheek, gently sucking off the sticky mess. Harry groans, squeezing Louis’ hip with his hand.

“Naughty, aren’t you?”

“When I want to be,” Louis grins. “Why? Does it work for you?”

“You have no idea.”

They eat their s’mores and sit by the fire for a while, just holding each other and kissing at random, now that they can. They don’t stop until the fire starts to die out and it gets too chilly to stay outside any longer. Harry can feel Louis’ cheeks going cold when they kiss, so he kisses both cheeks and hauls them up.

“C’mon, I think it’s time for bed,” Harry says. “Your lips are going blue.”

“You still like them,” Louis pouts.

“I’d like them more if they stayed attached and didn’t fall right off your face from frostbite.”

Louis laughs and rolls his eyes, throwing the blanket into the van once Harry opens the doors. He crawls into the back and throws it over his shoulder, “You can warm them up for me then.”

Harry groans, long and low in his throat, and crawls in after him.  
~  
 _May 17th, Oregon_

They sleep in the next morning. There’s no rush to go anywhere, because they’re bodies are intertwined under blankets and they’re skin to skin, shirts forgotten somewhere. Harry wakes up first, staring down at Louis sleeping. His head is still lolled onto his chest, mouth slightly open, hair sticking up every which way. Harry grins, spreading his hand over Louis’ lower back and feels the dip of his spine with his fingers. He presses his nose into the top of his head and kisses him. Louis snuffs, his hand digging into Harry’s hip and his neck stretching out, nearly whacking Harry in the mouth.

“’m sleeping,” Louis whines, his voice raspy and thick with sleep.

“’s already eleven thirty,” Harry says. “We should grab some food.”

“Mm, food sounds good,” Louis mumbles, lying motionless on top of Harry.

“That would involve you moving, babe,” Harry laughs.

“So comfortable,” Louis complains, voice muffled by Harry’s chest.

“We’ve got plenty of time to cuddle now, I promise,” Harry smiles so big his face nearly hurts. He can cuddle and kiss Louis whenever he wants now.

Louis smiles sleepily and sits up slowly, Harry by his side with a hand on his back to help him. “Sleep well?”

“Better than I have in so long,” Louis admits, stretching his arms over his head. “I felt…at ease.”

“Yeah, me too,” Harry replies softly. He puts his hand on the back of Louis’ neck and rubs the soft hairs at the base. He leans in and presses a soft kiss to his lips, but doesn’t let it get too dirty, saving them from gross morning breath. It’s more than enough for them to giggle and feel ready for their day.

“I like kissing you,” Louis whispers, the sounds of birds singing outside filling their ears. “I was trying to imagine that you were an awful kisser so I wouldn’t have fantasies about kissing you because I never thought it could happen. But…wow, it’s even nicer than I could have pictured.”

“Yeah?” Harry’s lip quirks up. “Wasn’t even a real kiss. We need to brush our teeth first, I think. Spare you the revulsion of my morning breath.”

“I know from last night,” Louis grins, putting his hand on Harry’s chest and stroking between his pecs softly. “Every kiss is good with you.”

Harry smiles, tracing Louis’ jaw with his thumb. Their lips brush again, noses bumping, before Harry sighs and smiles. “Alright, well, we should get dressed. We’ve got plenty of time to kiss more later, but I’m starving. I can feel my stomach grumbling.”

Louis smiles and trails his hand down to Harry’s belly, running his fingers around his belly button. “Don’t want your tummy to get mad at you. I could go for a good sandwich somewhere.”

“We’ll look for a deli or something,” Harry agrees. “I don’t think they’ll serve us without shirts. It’s like, a law or something.”

“Probably,” Louis smiles. Harry drops a kiss to his nose, making Louis’ face scrunch up and a giggle erupt from his mouth.

Harry lets go of Louis and rolls over, reaching into their bag and pulling out two shirts. At this point, all clothes they have are each other’s. Sometimes Louis gets shirts that are too big and Harry gets pants that are too short, but it doesn’t even matter.

They get dressed awkwardly in the back of the van, Louis with a pair of light-washed jean shorts and a black Marvel shirt and Harry with black running shorts and a neon green t-shirt. Harry sits on the edge of the open back door, his foot up on the ledge as he ties his sneaker. Louis stands and stretches out, his arms over his head. His shirt rides up a little, and Harry looks at the sliver of tan skin, biting his lip.

“You’re gorgeous, you know,” Harry says, blinking and looking at Louis’ face. Louis smiles softly and runs a hand through his messy hair.

“I just rolled out of bed, Haz.”

“That doesn’t matter,” Harry says, standing up and putting his hands on Louis’ hips. “You’re always gorgeous. I can’t believe I got lucky enough to have you.”

“I’m lucky to have you, too,” Louis smiles, putting his hands on Harry’s chest and looking up at him. “Girls fawn over you all the time. I can’t wait to hold your hand and make them all jealous and scowl at me for having you all to myself.”

“Well, I happen to know a lot of boys look at you,” Harry says. “Especially the football team. I’ll make them all jealous.”

“Only because people expect me to be gay more than you,” Louis rolls his eyes. “Because I’m smaller and my voice is higher and they always assume I’m gay.”

“You are gay, Lou.”

“I know!” Louis laughs, swatting his bicep. “I’m just saying! People don’t think that about you as much.”

“I want people to think I’m available for everyone so we can break hearts,” Harry smirks.

“I like the way you think,” Louis grins. “Ready to go? I’m starving.”

“Yeah, I’m ready,” Harry says, leaning down to kiss Louis’ bottom lip and give it a small bite. Louis smiles into it and pulls at the collar of his shirt.

“Later,” Louis promises with a wink. Harry groans low in his throat while Louis laughs, yanking him to the van.  
~  
“Oh my god,” Louis moans. “Oh my god. I didn’t think any meatball sub could beat New York’s, but, this is coming close.”

Harry laughs, watching Louis take a large bite of his sandwich, sauce dripping down his chin. “See? Venture out of that city of yours and you’ll explore a whole new world.”

“Hey! I came all the way to Washington for school, didn’t I?” Louis glares. “You’re just jealous. My meatball sub is probably better than your run-of-the-mill Italian combo.”

“Excuse you, it’s delicious. Want a bite?”

“Sharing food, so sweet of you,” Louis grins. “My last boyfriend refused to share any food with me. Greedy bastard.”

“Sounds like an asshole,” Harry agrees. “Here.”

“We’ll swap,” Louis suggests. He reaches out his sandwich, offering over a bite, while Harry does the same with his own. They bite at the same time, grinning at each other through it. They chew thoroughly before making any comments.

“Okay, yeah, that’s amazing,” Harry say, licking the marinara sauce from his lips. “Oh, man.”

“Wow, yours is good, too,” Louis says. “I’m telling you, little hole in the wall places are the best places.”

“Definitely,” Harry agrees. “Glad we found that place.”

“Mm,” Louis hums, chewing off another bite of his own sandwich. “You want another bite?”

Harry opens his mouth, his eyes twinkling and Louis bursts into a fit of laughter. “That’s obscene. You should save that for another time, babe.”

Harry laughs, butterflies flapping away in his tummy. Louis called him babe, and using a sexual innuendo, and it’s way too much to handle for noon. He takes another bite from Louis’ sandwich, offering Louis another bite as well.

“Thanks for taking me with you,” Louis says eventually. “I know I keep saying it, but I’m so glad I came. This is…amazing. So much better than working at Starbucks in a smelly, dirty city.”

“Told you,” Harry smiles. “I’m glad you came, too. If you said no I’d end up at home lonely and missing you all summer.”

“Aw, baby,” Louis coos, the skin by his eyes crinkling. “You’re so sweet. We’re going to go back to school and hold hands all the time and show so much PDA that our friends hate being around us.”

“That sounds wonderful, actually,” Harry laughs. “Easy way to get rid of them when we want alone time.”

“That’s true,” Louis hums. “Because…we’ll need a lot of that, hmm?”

“Lots,” Harry says seriously.

“Good thing we’re still living together, then. Just the two of us…all alone…how are we ever going to get any work done?” Louis bats his eyelashes with a smirk.

“No fucking idea,” Harry breathes. “I’m totally fucked.”

“Actually,” Louis says, squeezing his thigh. “I sort of like to be the one fucked.”

Harry groans low in his throat, looking around to hope no one heard them in their private little booth. “You’re so filthy.”

“I just know what I like,” Louis smirks, taking a bite of his sandwich, watching Harry as he chews.

“I like that,” Harry coughs. “Just…surprised me.”

“Full of surprises, babe. You’ll find out,” he winks, taking a sip from his Sprite.

“Stop being a tease in the middle of a deli,” Harry chastises, but comes out as more of a beg.

“I just like to rile you up,” Louis laughs. “This is going to be so fun.”

“What did I get myself into?” Harry shakes his head fondly.

“Hopefully,” Louis voice darkens. “My ass.”

“You’re filthy!” Harry laughs loudly, some patrons around them glaring at them.

“Like I said,” Louis smirks. “I know what I like.”  
~  
“God, Harry, can’t we listen to the radio? You’re really going to make me listen to this the entire trip? I’m going to lose my mind!” Louis complains, his knees up to his chest as they drive through the middle of nowhere. “I’m pretty sure I know every word to every song by now.”

“I told you it’s part of our adventure!”

“There’s no adventure if it’s the same songs over and over and over again.”

“I worked very hard on this playlist, Louis.”

“I understand that, Harry, but let’s just listen to the radio once in a while! Just a nice mixture,” Louis tries.

“But this is good music,” Harry pouts.

“Even good music can get overplayed.”

“But…but it fits so well with our whole cliché trip.”

“Ugh,” Louis sighs. “Fine. If it means that much to you, then we’ll leave it.”

“Thank you,” Harry grins.

“I’m about to piss myself, Haz. Can we stop at that rest stop coming up?”

“Yeah, I could use a piss break myself. We’ll get some food, too, if you want.”

“I could eat,” Louis hums. “This trip is going to make me so fat.”

“You’d be gorgeous anyway, believe me. Gain all the weight you want, I’m still going to fuck you into oblivion all the time.”

Louis laughs loudly. “Only if you’re good enough.”

“Oh, trust me,” Harry smirks, reaching over the console and squeezing Louis’ upper thigh. “I’ll be good enough.”

“We’ll see about that,” Louis smiles, taking the hand off of his thigh and intertwining their fingers together, resting them back on his leg.

Harry pulls into the rest stop and they get out of the car, Louis grabbing his hand again and gluing himself close to Harry’s side. Harry smiles, putting his arm around Louis without breaking their contact, so Louis’ arm crossed his chest to hold the hand over his shoulder.

They walk into the stop, a small, run down bar filled with mostly truckers, refueling their energy before heading back on the road again. A few heads turn to look at the couple and Harry internally panics. They’re big, burly guys with tattoos and beards and they don’t exactly look like guys who accept gays and lesbians. Harry doesn’t want to believe in stereotypes, but he feels hard eyes on them. He’s heard some horror stories about this kind of stuff, and he tightens his arm around Louis’ shoulder possessively.

Louis smiles at them, though, then presses a kiss to Harry’s lips. “I’m going to go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back. Grab us a seat, okay?”

“Sure,” Harry nods. “Course.”

Louis walks away and Harry straightens his posture, walking over to the bar and sitting at the end, saving a seat beside him for Louis.

“That your boyfriend?” a voice from besides him asks. Harry tenses up, signaling the waitress over.

“Uh, yeah, it is,” Harry swallows, then asks the waitress for two waters.

“My son just came out to me a few weeks ago,” the man says, coughing as if he’s trying not to cry. “You two are….are very cute together. I hope my son can find the same.”

Harry smiles, watching Louis walk back from the bathroom. “Yeah, I hope so, too. We’re very, very happy together.”

The man smiles, giving him a curt nod. “Best of luck to you both, then.”

“Thank you. And best of luck to your son, as well.”

“Thank you.”

Louis comes back smiling and puts his hands on Harry’s shoulders. “Looked over the menu yet, babe?”

“Um, no, not yet,” Harry says. “Got us water, though.”

“Oh, thank you,” Louis smiles, kissing his cheek and sitting next to him. “So thoughtful.”

Harry smiles, taking his hand in his and kissing the back of it.

“I didn’t know you were so into PDA,” Louis teases.

“I’m not, but I’m into you.”

“What a cornball,” Louis grins. “I’m into you, too, though, if that helps.”

“It does,” Harry smiles dopily. Man, he loves him so fucking much.

“This is from that man down there,” the waitress says, coming over with a plate of French fries and points to one of the truckers down at the end. Louis looks over and waves, and the man tips his baseball cap.

“Very cute couple,” he says, and Louis and Harry smile at each other.

“We think so,” Louis tells him with a grin. “Thank you.”

“Free fries,” Harry murmurs. “Free pie. Our relationship has many perks.”

“Knew you were only dating me because we got free pie,” Louis huffs with a smile.

“Damn, I was hoping you wouldn’t figure out my plan,” Harry teases.

“I caught you, Styles.”

Harry leans over to kiss him.  
~  
“Hey,” Louis says that night when they’re tucked away in the van. He’s curled into Harry’s bare chest, tracing his fingertips over the expanse of his collarbones.

“Mm?” Harry hums, his fingers in Louis’ hair.

“I sort of want you to fuck me right now.”

It’s said so bluntly, so casually, but Harry’s heart rate spikes and he feels a stroke or something coming on. They’ve been hinting towards it, of course, and Harry knew they’d get there eventually, but just hearing the words on Louis’ tongue…it’s a lot.

“Sort of?”

“Okay, I really want you to fuck me,” Louis corrects with a smile. “I’ve waited long enough. I’ve wanted this since we met and I can’t wait any longer. But, I mean…only if you want to. We can wait, if that’s what you want.”

“Why on earth would I want to wait any longer?” Harry asks. “I’ve wanted this just as long as you. Why should we torture ourselves by waiting? Let’s do it. Let’s do it as much as we can now before we move back into school and don’t have the time anymore. Let’s do it all the time.”

Louis laughs loudly. “How very romantic of you.”

“I’m just making a fair point,” Harry grins.

“Babe, you don’t have to convince me. I’m the one that brought it up, if you forgot.”

“Why are we wasting so much time chit chatting?” Harry asks, almost to himself. “Come here.”

He rolls over on top of Louis and Louis squeals happily. Louis’ legs wrap around Harry’s waist to pull him closer to him, his arms wrapping around Harry’s neck.

“I hope you have stuff,” Louis murmurs against Harry’s lips.

“I do,” Harry promises, kissing down Louis’ jaw. “Planned ahead.”

“Planned to get lucky?”

“Was being optimistic.”

Louis laughs as Harry searches his bag for lube and condoms. He makes a victory noise when he finds them, fitting them both into his hands and dropping them by Louis’ side.

“Can’t wait to get you properly naked,” Harry says, nipping at Louis’ jaw, living a little mark there. Louis hums, grinding himself against Harry’s hip. Harry pulls his shirt over his head, kissing down the expanse of his neck and his chest. His fingers brush over Louis’ nipples and he kisses between his pecs. “Like your nipples being played with?”

“I don’t—knoooow,” Louis moans, looking down at Harry suck his left nub into his mouth. “Mm.”

Harry’s hands move down Louis’ sides and pulling his sweatpants down. Louis kicks them off and hooks his legs around Harry’s thighs. He tangles his hand in Harry’s long curls and bites his lip. Harry leaves open mouth kisses down Louis’ torso and reaches Louis’ hard cock, lying curved over his belly.

Harry kisses the leaking head, then wraps his lips around it. Louis gasps above him, his hips stuttering slightly. Harry slicks up his fingers with lube while taking Louis further into his mouth. He forces Louis’ legs apart and Louis obliges, spreading them and puts his feet flat on the ground. Harry’s finger prods at Louis’ hole, pushing in slowly and causing Louis to whimper. Louis is so tight around his fingers and Harry can’t imagine how tight it’s going to be around his cock.

“Are you alright?” Harry asks. The last thing he wants is to hurt Louis at all. Louis smiles at him and nods.

“Just fine, babe. You’re good.”

Harry preens slightly under the gentle praise. Harry doesn’t have a ton of experience, and he’s sure Louis has way more. He’d hate to do something completely embarrassing and not be good enough.

“How many?” Harry asks, trying to sound casual.

“Uh,” Louis scrunches his eyebrows. “Usually take three, because I’m really tight, but—“

“No, not what I meant,” Harry coughs awkwardly. He slows his fingers but continues speaking. “Uh…other guys.”

“Oh,” Louis freezes. Harry doesn’t stop his fingers movements, because that might make it even more weird, but he’s definitely blushing. “I don’t…really know? Do we have to talk about it…right now?”

“I just don’t want to be bad for you,” Harry shrugs sadly.

“You won’t be,” Louis says firmly, sitting up on his elbows to look at him. “Absolutely not. Most of mine were just meaningless little flings, a lot of them I was drunk for. I’ve only had three boyfriends, and you’re one of them. You’re already better than everyone else, trust me.”

“Really?”

“Yes, baby,” Louis smiles softly, putting his hand on Harry’s cheek and stroking it. “C’mon. You’re going to be so good for me because you mean so much to me.”

“Is it less than 100?” Harry asks hesitantly.

“Much less,” Louis laughs. “Harry, focus.”

“Sorry.”

Louis lies back down and spreads his legs further apart. Harry squeezes a third finger inside and makes Louis groan slightly. Harry looks up.

“Fine, babe,” Louis promises. “Told you I’m tight.”

Harry bites his lip and pushes his fingers in deeply. He tries to loosen Louis up as much as he can so it doesn’t hurt at all. He may spend a little too much time on it because Louis starts to moan and buck his hips into nothing.

“Harry, baby, I don’t need anymore. Gimme your cock,” he begs. “That’s what I want.”

“Alright,” Harry nods once. He sits up to pull off his own clothes, his hard cock hanging heavily between his thighs. Louis looks him up and down with a smirk and bites his lip. He searches blindly for the condom and finally picks it out, opening it and rolling it down Harry’s cock. Harry sputters at the touch, and Louis grins devilishly below him.

“You’re so big,” Louis murmurs, stroking him a few times. “Never seen you hard.”

“You’ve seen me soft?” Harry asks, laughing.

“Only once after your shower,” Louis giggles. “I mean, you were big then, too, but now…damn.”

“Well I guess I should put it to good use then, hmm?” Harry asks, biting the inside of his cheek.

“You better,” Louis says sharply with a laugh. He spreads his legs further apart, welcoming Harry in between them. Harry leans down to kiss Louis fiercely, and Louis sighs into it, tugging at the back of his hair.

Harry enters him slowly, forcing the tip of his cock into the small, puckered hole. Louis twitches and clenches, biting down on Harry’s lip roughly.

“Sorry,” he mumbles against Harry’s lips. “So—fuck, big.”

“Sorry,” Harry laughs lightly. “I’ll be gentle.”

“Thanks,” Louis wheezes, his fists clenching in Harry’s hair. Harry tries desperately not to be too arrogant about this whole thing, but he’s beyond excited that he’s the biggest Louis’ had, and he’s making him react like this.

Harry is gentle with him, thrusting slow and steady and letting Louis adjust to his size. Louis whimpers underneath him, sighing and moaning prettily. Harry revels in it, his chest swelling with pride knowing he can do this to Louis. He may not be Louis’ first, but he has a chance to be the last, and that’s a huge deal.

“So tight, oh my god,” Harry groans, trying his hardest not to come too quickly. He needs to make this last as long as possible and be as good as he can be for Louis. Louis clenches and Harry moans, fucking harder and chasing Louis’ orgasm.

“Close,” Louis gasps. “Oh, fuck.”

“Yeah, baby, come for me. Come on my cock,” Harry encourages. His fingers dig into Louis’ hips, his abs flexing with every thrust. One hand grabs at Louis’ cock, tugging him quickly. “C’mon, Louis, baby.”

Louis mewls, and as if on cue, he comes harshly with a cry. He paints his stomach with white ribbons and gets some on Harry’s palm. Harry comes seconds after, hips stuttering and moaning low in his throat. They both pant for a few moments before Harry is able to pull out. His entire body feels like jello and he throws himself down beside Louis.

“Shit,” Harry breathes. “That was…wow.”

“Wow is a good word,” Louis agrees. “Wow describes it pretty well.”

“Amazing is another word,” Harry says. “Fucking amazing.”

“Incredible,” Louis tacks on. “Mind-blowing. Fantastic. Wonderful. Terrific. Should I continue?”

“Yeah, it’s doing wonders for my ego,” Harry grins.

“Mm, you deserve it. Fucking phenomenal job. You shouldn’t worry about any guys in my past, because you are definitely, definitely the best,” Louis says, snaking his arm around Harry’s torso and putting his head on his chest. Harry laughs and puts his arms around Louis, pressing a kiss to his sweaty forehead.

“Well, I’m glad you’re impressed with my skills,” Harry smirks. “I guess that means we’re going to be doing that more often.”

“Oh yeah. All the time. Like, a lot.”

“I have no complaints about that,” Harry grins.

“One thing you’ll learn about me,” Louis says through a yawn, closing his eyes. “Is after sex, I either get so horny I’ll climb right on top of you without any kind of refractory period, or I’ll fall right asleep. Usually I fall right asleep, though, because I’m a lazy fuck and I love my sleep. You already know that.”

“I do know that. Fine with me, because I’m the same way. Except I need a very long refractory period and a good nap before I can go again. Hope that isn’t a deal breaker.”

“Hmm, we’ll see about that,” Louis mumbles. “I’ll fix you.”

Harry laughs loudly and Louis smiles with his eyes still closed. Louis puts a hand over Harry’s mouth and shushes him, mumbling about needing his beauty sleep.  
~  
 _May 18th, Northern California_

Harry would normally be so much more at ease being back in California, feeling more at home, but being with Louis always feels like home.

“Always wanted to see California,” Louis says quietly, looking at the window with his feet tucked underneath him. “It’s so beautiful here. How could you ever leave this for rainy Washington?”

“Scholarship money, really,” Harry laughs. “But it isn’t so bad. It’s not like I plan to be in Washington forever, but I like to travel. I figured it wasn’t too far away from home; still in driving distance, at least. I’ve always wanted to see all fifty states. It’s on my bucket list.”

“Really?” Louis asks, turning his head to look at him. “That’s on mine, too.”

“I guess we really are a perfect match, then,” Harry grins. 

“I guess so.”

“Are you getting hungry? There are some great seafood places around these parts,” Harry says.

“Seafood sounds great to me. Love seafood,” Louis responds, pulling his legs into his chest.

“Me too. Glad we can agree because I know a lot of people hate it.”

“We both live on the coasts. How could we not love seafood?” Louis grins. “I can’t wait until you come to New York and see where I’m from. It’s going to be so cool to see each other’s places like this, you know? Like opposite sides of the world coming to meet as one.”

“We should make it our mission as a couple to see every state. That’s our couple’s bucket list. Deal?”

“Deal,” Louis grins, looking over at Harry fondly. “Next summer, it’s the east coast. Got it?”

“Ay ay, captain,” Harry looks over and smiles. He holds out his hand for Louis and Louis takes it with a soft smile. 

“Can’t wait,” Louis says softly.

After a while longer of driving, they find a small seafood place that seems informal and perfect for what they want. They love to find the tiny hole in the wall food joints because they usually have the best food with the most incredible people. They’ve met so many lovely owners and employees at every place they’ve eaten at.

“’We’ve Got Crabs’,” Louis says with a laugh. “This place is perfect.”

“The name alone is a definite winner. The food has to be amazing, don’t you think?”

“Has to be,” Louis agrees. 

Harry opens Louis’ door like the true gentleman he is and holds his hand. He presses a kiss to his lips quickly. “Sorry. it’s just been too long since I’ve kissed you. our last pit stop was so long ago, it feels like.”

“That’s true. I think you deserve a better kiss than that, though,” Louis murmurs, putting his hand on Harry’s neck and kissing him deeply. Harry’s lips spread into a smile as he attempts to kiss back, but his teeth some to get in the way. When they break apart, Louis seals one last kiss on his mouth and squeezes his hand. “Okay. That should hold us over for a bit longer.”

“That’ll do it,” Harry grins. “More later?”

“Lots more later,” Louis winks. “C’mon, enough funny business. Time to stuff our faces.”

Harry willingly follows him along. Louis opens the door and takes a deep breath in. He looks over his shoulder at Harry with a grin.

“I smell hushpuppies,” he says conspiratorially. Harry plays along and sniffs the air.

“Me too,” he says lowly. “We should investigate.”

Louis falls into a fit of giggles and pulls Harry further inside. A waitress smiles brightly at them and picks up two menus from her podium.

“Hi! Welcome to We’ve Got Crabs. Indoor or outdoor seating?”

“Outdoor,” Louis replies with a friendly smile. “Thank you.”

“Not even going to ask me?” Harry says teasingly in his ear.

“We’ve been stuck in that van forever. We need the fresh air, don’t you think?”

“Okay, that’s fair enough.”

They follow the waitress outside onto a dock overlooking the ocean.

“This is gorgeous,” Louis murmurs. “So much better than inside. The whole proper seafood experience.”

“That’s for sure,” Harry says.

“My name is Allison if you two need anything!” the waitress chirps.

“Thanks, Allison,” Harry says, pulling out Louis’ seat for him before sitting in his own. They open up their menus and Louis hums, looking it up and down.

“What are you in the mood for?”

“I don’t know, everything looks so good.”

“I know. We definitely have to get hushpuppies, though. Those are my favorite.”

“Definitely a good pairing to seafood,” Harry says in agreement. 

They finally settle on snow crab legs, stuffed clams, seared scallops, coconut shrimp, and a beer each, with a large order of hushpuppies to split. Louis ties their hands together over the table and smiles.

“Any plans for this part of California? Since this is your territory and all.”

“I was thinking of hanging by the Big Sur.”

“Oh? What’s that?” Louis asks, picking up his beer bottle by the neck with his free hand and taking a sip.

“Oh, it’s gorgeous, Lou, you’ll love it. It’s a big strip of California where you can go camping and hiking and gorgeous strips of beaches that are usually pretty secluded. We’ll be in a nice quiet area, just the two of us surrounded by beautiful California. What’s better than that?”

“I can’t think of anything,” Louis says softly. “I can’t wait to see. That sounds so lovely.”

“It definitely is, and you being with me is going to make it even better,” Harry murmurs. He doesn’t care how sappy he sounds. He fucking loves Louis, even if he hasn’t told him yet. He can feel it inside of him that Louis is something serious, something that’s going to last a long time, and hopefully become permanent. When he looks at Louis, permanence is what he thinks about. He thinks about waking up to Louis in their tiny dorm, in their off-campus apartment, and eventually, in a home they own with their kids running around. He’s loved Louis for so long, and he’ll continue to love him for as long as he lives, he thinks.

“Aren’t you a romantic?” Louis grins. “Thanks, babe.”

“Did you pack any swim trunks? I plan to kiss you a lot in the ocean, so.”

Louis giggles and shakes his head. “No, I didn’t think I’d need them. I thought we’d be in the van most of the time.”

“I did say we’d make it down to California, though. Plenty of beach time for us,” Harry says.

“That’s true. Well, guess we need to make a pit stop and pick some up,” Louis shrugs with a smile. “You can help pick them out for me.”

“Mm, I’ll be sure to pick the best ones.”

“If it were up to you, I don’t think I’d even end up wearing anything at all,” Louis grins cheekily.

“That’s probably very true,” Harry laughs.

“It’s totally true!” Louis laughs. “Don’t even be modest. You love my little body.”

“I won’t even try to say that isn’t true,” Harry says lowly. “God, your body is a wonderland.”

“Did you just quote John Mayer?” Louis laughs loudly. “You’re awful.”

“And yet, you still slept with me and agreed to be my boyfriend.”

“I may regret this,” Louis rolls his eyes, but the smile on his face gives him away.

“You won’t,” Harry says softly, and Louis squeezes his hand.

“I know.”

“Here are your hushpuppies,” Allison says, putting a plate in front of them. “Your order should be out shortly.”

“Great, thanks,” Louis smiles at her. He reaches into his backpack for his camera and makes sure to take a picture of the hushpuppies alone, then one of Harry making a silly face and pulling the hushpuppies close. Louis also documents Harry’s first bite of it, his eyes closing with how delicious it is. 

“Lou, fuck, put the camera down and try one,” Harry says, picking up another hushpuppy and moving his arm across the table. “Open up.”

Louis laughs and opens his mouth to bite the hushpuppy. “Oh, wow. That is…amazing.”

“They’re amazing!” Harry repeats. “I could live off of these.”

“Mm,” Louis hums, finishing the hushpuppy between Harry’s fingers. “So yummy.”

“I can’t imagine how good the rest of the food will be,” Harry says, taking another one from the pile.

“I know. So after this we’ll stop for swim trunks?” Louis asks, biting into another one.

“Yup, that’s our plan,” Harry says.

The food comes out not much later, and Louis takes more pictures. They crack shells open and giggle about it, butter smeared all over their fingers.

“Babe, you have to try the crab,” Louis moans, breaking open another shell and pulling out a long piece of meat. He dunks it in butter and feeds it to Harry, who takes it happily.

“Oh my god,” Harry moans in response. “Wow, fuck, everything is so delicious. Here, try the stuffed clams.”

He picks one up with messy fingers and feeds it to Louis across the table. Louis hums and nods quickly.

“Oh, yes. Those are incredible too. This place is so good. We haven’t had one bad meal this whole trip, do you realize?” Louis says, chewing thoughtfully and popping a seared scallop in his mouth with a fork.

“I know. Everything we’ve had has been so good. Been a pretty great trip if I do say so myself,” Harry smirks, winking at Louis. “And you didn’t even want to come. Working back in New York, pff. Stupid idea, babe.”

“I know. What on earth was I thinking?” Louis smiles. “And if I were home I wouldn’t be dating you, which would be such a shame, really. What a waste that would be.”

“I completely agree,” Harry grins. “We’d both be having pretty shit summers alone.”

“Mm,” Louis hums in agreement, feeding Harry a coconut shrimp. “This is much better.”

After stuffing themselves with food and beer, Harry pays the bill for them and they head out, making sure to thank Allison on their way. Harry opens Louis’ door for him, always being a perfect gentleman, and presses a kiss to his cheek.

“I don’t know if I’ve said this before, and I probably have a billion times, but I’m so glad you’re here with me,” Harry says softly. He expects Louis to laugh at him and tell him to fuck off, but he doesn’t. He smiles, just a twitch of the corners of his mouth, and his hand comes to Harry’s neck.

“You have, but I always like to hear it,” he murmurs, pressing a kiss to Harry’s mouth. “And I’m glad I’m here, too. I’m really fucking happy about it, actually, just so you know. _You_ make me so happy.”

Harry’s chest expands with love. He knows, of course, that Louis likes him, or else he never would have come, never would have become his boyfriend, but hearing him say it, hearing Harry is able to make Louis happy…it’s a whole other feeling. It’s so comforting to know he’s no longer pining for Louis, but he has him, and he’s going to do everything in his power to keep him around for a long, long time. 

“You…you make me so happy, too, Louis. Always have,” Harry confesses softly, his lips pressing to Louis’ cheek again.

“Always will, hopefully,” Louis murmurs, kissing him again. “If you’ll let me.”

“Course,” Harry breathes. “Always.”

“We’re getting sidetracked,” Louis says firmly, but it wavers slightly.

“We’ve got no schedule. We don’t have to rush. We’ve got no place to be except with each other,” Harry murmurs, pressing his lips under Louis’ jaw. He can hear Louis’ sharp intake of breath and he takes it as a win.

“That’s true, but…you promised me we’d go to the beach. Can’t very well go to the beach when it’s dark out.”

“We can,” Harry says easily.

“Well I need to work on my tan, and being out there at night would defeat my purpose of going. Been stuck in this car too long. Gotta sit in the sun and get some color,” Louis mutters, trying to keep his voice even as Harry kisses his neck.

“You’re probably even hotter with a tan,” Harry moans. “Is that even possible?”

“I suppose you need to find out,” Louis smirks. “C’mon, babe. Promise tonight we can fool around. I really want to hit the beach, though.”

“Fine,” Harry sighs dramatically. “I guess I’ll have to pretend my boner doesn’t exist.”

“I guess you will,” Louis smirks. “Ah well.”

“Such a tease, aren’t you?”

“Actually, you’re the one who started this whole thing, so I can’t be held responsible, babe.”

“Okay, that’s fair,” Harry laughs to himself, looking down at Louis’ lap and his hair falling into his face. “Maybe I’m the tease, then.”

“Maybe you are,” Louis hums. “Too early in our relationship to tell, I think. We’ll have to wait it out.”

“Mm, I guess so. You ready to go?”

“I’ve been ready,” Louis laughs. “You keep stalling.”

“Just can’t resist kissing you, babe,” Harry murmurs.

“Get into the driver’s seat and let’s go,” Louis whines, tugging on one of Harry’s curls. “Want to go to the beach.”

Harry kisses him once more, because he has to, and closes Louis’ door. He gets into the car and kicks on the engine, pulling out of the parking lot of We’ve Got Crabs. They drive in silence for a while until he sees the flash of Louis’ camera go off and hears the click of the shutter. He turns to him and Louis is giggling with a shrug.

“Want to make sure I remember all the great parts about this trip, and you’re the absolute best part of it all. Plus, the sun is coming in perfectly and you looked like an angel, so I obviously had to document it,” Louis explains simply, and Harry is so in love with him he feels like he could suffocate with it.

“We should make an album of it once we get home,” Harry suggests casually, trying to keep the insane fondness out of his voice.

“Definitely,” Louis agrees quickly. “Would be such a nice keepsake. We can show exactly where we went, and when we hit the east coast next summer we can make another one.”

“Yeah, that would be great. Make one for every trip we go on.”

“Hope there’s plenty of those,” Louis grins.

“Me too,” Harry says, holding out his hand for Louis to take. “After we hit all of the US, we’ll make our way over to Europe.”

“God, talk dirty to me,” Louis moans and laughs. “Talking about us in Europe is going to turn me on.”

“Now I know what to say to get into your pants. I hold the key,” Harry says triumphantly.

“You do,” Louis grins, squeezing his hand. “Always wanted to go to Europe. Paris, Milan, London, Greece, all of it. Make a whole summer of it.”

“We’ll make it there,” Harry promises. “We’ll definitely make it happen at some point.”

“That would be great,” Louis says softly. “As long as I’m with you, of course.”

Harry brings his hand up to his lips to kiss his knuckles. He’s afraid that if he speaks, the love he has for Louis will drip from his lips.  
~  
Harry pulls into a strip mall in the small town they’ve found themselves in. Louis sees a PacSun and leads them to it once they get out of the van.

“Will you help me pick one out?” Louis asks, their hands linked loosely between their bodies.

“Of course,” Harry says. “Find something that makes that ass look amazing, of course.”

“Doesn’t always look amazing?” Louis challenges.

“Yes, duh, obviously,” Harry tries to backtrack. “I just meant, like, something to really show it off.”

“Babe, I’m kidding! I love hearing you panic,” Louis giggles, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Relax, baby, I’m just joking 98 percent of the time. You’ll know when I’m seriously offended, trust me.”

“I don’t think you ever have been,” Harry says, dumbstruck.

“I probably haven’t in front of you. You’re so good to me I have no reason to be offended,” Louis shrugs. “You’re wonderful, is the thing.”

“I don’t know about wonderful,” Harry blushes softly.

“Better than you give yourself credit for,” Louis murmurs. . “Okay, way too much mushy sentimental stuff for one day. We have stuff to do, yeah? Keep getting caught up.”

“I know,” Harry laughs quietly. “Sorry, right, swim trunks. I’m focused now.”

“Good,” Louis says. “Let’s see what we’ve got to work with.”

They search the store, going through racks and shelves of clothes. Louis collects a few in his arms but Harry takes them from him to hold, wanting to be a perfect gentleman.

“I like those, Lou,” Harry says, pointing out a tight pair of black ones with a red stripe on the outer thighs. Louis hums and leafs through the rack and finds his size and Harry puts it over his forearm on top of the pile growing there.

“Okay, I think I should try these on because I think I’ve gotten almost every pair in the store waiting in your arms. I only need one, realistically,” Louis laughs. “C’mon, you can come with me and tell me which one you like the best.”

Harry follows him along, watching his ass sway in his tight khaki shorts. They ask an employee to open up a dressing room for them and Harry follows Louis quietly along, his cheeks flushing at the thought of someone knowing that Harry is going to watch Louis undress. It’s somehow very thrilling.

Louis closes the door behind them and Harry sits on the small bench in the white room, staring at his reflection in the mirror in front of him. He lays down the shorts and hands Louis the pair he picked out for him.

“Try these on first, babe. Let me just see how they look,” Harry says. Louis unbuttons his khakis and pulls them down, kicking them away and replacing them with the tight swim trunks. He observes himself in the mirror, his lips pushed out and eyebrows together in concentration.

“Hmm, what do you think? They’re a bit tight, no? But if I get the bigger size it’ll be too big around the waist. It’s just tight in the thigh and ass area, don’t you think?” Louis asks, turning to his side and smoothing his hands down the material.

“Definitely those,” Harry says, mouth watering with how delicious Louis’ legs look in them. “Looks good tight. Can see everything.”

“Well, I don’t want the whole word to see everything,” Louis snaps with no real bite behind it.

“The beaches aren’t all the crowded, though. They aren’t like those public beaches you’re used to, Lou. You should definitely buy those, though. They look…so incredible,” Harry says, his voice getting lower.

“You sure? I don’t want to look fat or anything,” Louis says.

“Fat?” Harry snaps out of his aroused state of mind. “You are not fat. Are you crazy?”

“Okay, I’m thick,” Louis admits. “But I don’t want to look too thick, you know?”

“You look perfect. That’s how you look. God, I want to suck you off right now, that’s how good they look,” Harry murmurs.

“Why don’t you?” Louis turns around, his mouth quirked up into a smirk. “We’re alone.”

“Well, not entirely. That salesgirl Amy or whatever her name tag said is probably right outside, and I’m sure there’s customers next to us.”

“I’ll try and be quiet, then,” Louis whispers dramatically and winks. “Scared?”

“No,” Harry scoffs and coughs once. “Just, uh, never done anything like this in public.”

“Me either,” Louis reveals. “It’ll be fun, though. If these look so good on me, why don’t you prove it?”

“Oh, I will,” Harry says with more confidence. “C’mere and I will.”

Louis sits on the bench and Harry gets on his knees between Louis’ legs, helping Louis out of his tight shorts and revealing Louis’ half hard cock. It’s still so brand new and exciting and thrilling. Harry doesn’t actually know if he’ll ever get over it, though. It might just be _Louis_ that’s so thrilling.

Harry’s mouth closes around the tip of Louis’ cock, taking him down slowly and feeling him harden in his mouth. Louis’ hands tangle themselves into Harry’s curls and tug softly.

“Mm,” Louis moans quietly. “Good at this, aren’t you?”

Harry tries not to let his that boost his ego too much, but he can’t help it. He just got his mouth around Louis and he’s already praising him. There’s really no better feeling, except maybe the feeling of being inside of Louis. That was pretty wonderful and he can’t wait until it happens again. 

Harry swallows around Louis, his cheeks hollowing out and his nose nearly brushing over Louis’ tummy. His slim fingers encircle Louis’ waist and his eyes flutter closed, beginning to bob his head slowly. Louis whimpers from above him, his fingers tightening in Harry’s hair.

“Fuck, should have been doing this since we met,” Louis murmurs. “Should have done this so much sooner. Waited way too long for something this good.”

Harry’s eyes glaze over with tears at his words. Sometimes, Louis comes out with such beautiful words and it hits Harry like a freight train every time. He’s so not used to this side of Louis. He’s normally very brash and loud and sarcastic, so when he’s like this, soft and quiet and loving, it makes Harry’s head spin. He never expects it, and it always turns his insides into mush. His mouth is too full to reply, so he settles for giving Louis’ hips a firm squeeze to show he’s heard, and he agrees. 

Louis is getting louder, now, and Harry would really rather a sales associate not barge in and kick them out. He pulls off of Louis quickly, ignoring Louis’ protests, and grabs Louis’ underwear, balling them up and stuffing the black material into Louis’ mouth.

“Being too loud, babe. Love when you’re loud, but gotta finish you off before we leave, yeah? Can’t get caught,” Harry explains quietly, kissing Louis’ jaw. Louis takes a deep breath through his nose and nods once. Harry moves back down his body, kissing the place where his thigh meets his hip.

Harry takes him down again, now fully hard and leaking. His hands squeeze Louis’ thighs, forcing all of Louis down in one quick go. Harry can hear Louis hum, but the sound is thankfully muffled by the cotton.

Louis’ hips buck up and off the bench, and it sounds like he’s trying to speak, so Harry takes that as a sign that he’s close to coming. He’s made Louis come once before, but doing it again will definitely ensure his ego is healthy.

Louis creates more sounds, his voice higher and his fingers turning into fists. His thighs tense up underneath Harry’s touch and there’s a muffled groan before shooting off into Harry’s mouth. Harry swallows it willingly, squeezing Louis’ thighs and pulling off slowly to tease Louis’ softening cock. 

Harry sits back on his heels and takes the underwear from Louis’ mouth and replaces them with a kiss. Louis’ arms wrap around Harry’s neck to bring him in closer, his fingers playing with the hair on the back of his neck. Harry’s lips pull into a smile, his teeth clanking awkwardly with Louis’, but it’s still so, so good.

“Okay, you’re so good at everything, aren’t you? Just an overall talented person. Good student, good singer, good boyfriend, and a wonderful fuck. Quadruple threat we have here,” Louis says exasperatedly.

“I’m also a pretty decent at guitar,” Harry gives a small, sheepish smile. Louis throws his hands up in the air.

“Of course you are! I’m going to need to hear this for myself. I need proof for science,” Louis says seriously.

“Well, I didn’t bring it to school with me because I didn’t want to be annoying or whatever. I’ll show you at some point,” Harry promises. 

“Good, because I’d really like to hear you,” Louis says, voice softer than it was just seconds ago. “Plus, it’s probably so hot. You would definitely get into my pants that night.”

“Should have said so earlier,” Harry laughs.

“Should have mentioned you played guitar,” Louis replies easily. “Never thought to mention it?”

“It never really came up, I guess. And I’m really not very good yet, so,” Harry shrugs. “I’ve been teaching myself for only a few months, and obviously I haven’t had much time to practice because of school so I’m still not great.”

“I’m sure you’re better than you think you are,” Louis tells him, pushing some hair behind his ear for him. “We should probably go. I’ve had my flaccid dick out for a pretty large amount of time while in a public changing room and I don’t feel great about it.”

Harry laughs loudly and kisses him. “Sorry. Buying the ones I picked out, then?”

“I don’t even need to try the others on, Haz, this is an obvious choice.”

“Just checking.”

Louis stands up and pulls Harry off of his knees and Louis gets himself dressed, his underwear slightly damp from being in his mouth. He takes the trunks and they leave the changing room. It seems that the sales associate may have heard some of their spontaneous rendezvous if her red cheeks are anything to go by. She averts her eyes from them quickly when they walk out of the room and Louis turns his head to smirk at Harry and quickly winking at him.

“Thanks for your help!” Louis calls to Amy. She murmurs something that sounds like a ‘no problem’ and goes back to rearranging a rack that’s already perfectly organized. 

Harry offers to pay for Louis’ purchase but Louis shoos him off, pushing him away as he hands the sales associate his debit card. He thanks the kid politely as he hands over the bag and Louis takes Harry’s hand once more and they walk back out to the car.

“Lips are so swollen, babe. I’m pretty sure those are a dead giveaway of what we were doing behind closed doors,” Louis laughs once they get back into the car, his thumb brushing over Harry’s bottom lip. “So red and raw. Looks so pretty. Should be a lipstick shade or something. We could call it _BJ Lips_ or something like that and sell the idea to Sephora. We could make millions.”  
“It sounds like you’ve put a lot of thought into this,” Harry observes with a smile.

“Just looks so gorgeous on you,” Louis murmurs, kissing his swollen lips once. “Okay, we have to go or else we’ll never make it to the beach.”

“You’re right, sorry. lots of sidetracking each other today.”

“Well, that blowjob was totally worth it, so I’m not mad about it,” Louis shrugs.

“I’m not either,” Harry smirks. “What an adventure.”

“Damn, I should have taken a picture to document it,” Louis says with a huff.

“We have time to document that at a later time,” Harry says smoothly. Louis bites his lip and smiles at him.

“That’s fair.”

They drive in the direction of the coast, their roadtrip playlist still blasting with their windows rolled down. They can feel when they’re close to the beach because the wind picks up and the air smells of salt. Louis takes a deep breath and sighs happily.

“Love the smell of the beach. I don’t get to smell this very often. I’m usually too lazy to drive to any of the beaches because they’re all a pretty long drive away and I don’t have much time for that. All I smell in the city is pollution and street vendor pretzels,” Louis mumbles, looking out the window.

“Mm,” Harry hums. “That makes sense. I don’t get to any major cities too often for the same reason. I’ve got all the stuff I need around so I don’t really bother going to San Francisco or any of that. It’s not that far, I just don’t feel like making the trip most of the time.”

“Exactly,” Louis says. 

Harry parks as close as he can get to the beach, the view from the car spectacular. Louis pulls out his camera once again, taking a few pictures from inside of the car. Harry watches him fondly, adoring how simple Louis can be. He’s not hard to please, and he enjoys the little things in life. He wants to remember every moment of their trip together, and that weighs happily in Harry’s chest.

“So ready for this,” Louis says. “This place is incredible.”

“You haven’t seen anything yet,” Harry grins, cutting the engine off. From the car, all they can really see are the rocky mountains and the shining ocean stretching on forever. They can’t see much of the actual beach, none of the sand or the tidal waves, but they’ll get to that.

They change in the back of the van into their swim trunks and Harry shamelessly ogles at Louis’ thick thighs and plump ass. He reaches his hand out to grab it and Louis slaps it away with a giggle. They take their backpacks with them and hold hands as they venture down to the beach together. Harry checks the map on his phone and mentions that this is McWay Falls, so there must be a waterfall around, which Louis is ecstatic about.

“That’s so sick, I can’t wait to see it.”

When they find themselves on the beach, they take off their shoes and stuff them into the backpacks. It’s later in the day, so there are only a few stragglers around. Louis makes sure to take out his camera to snap pictures of the scenery. The water is so crystal blue and shimmering in the late-day sunlight. It’s a small area of water partially surrounded by rocks and cutting most of it off from the Pacific Ocean.

“This is…incredible,” Louis says, and it’s the quietest Harry has ever heard him speak. His voice is normally so loud, the volume of it coming naturally. But now, it’s so soft, full of awe and wonder.

“The color of the water reminds me of your eyes,” Harry points out in Louis ear, breath ghosting over his skin. “Shining bright and breathtakingly beautiful.”

Louis turns to face him with a gentle smile. He doesn’t respond to Harry’s compliment but his eyes shine a little bit more than usual.

“C’mon, then. Let’s explore.”

Harry laughs and follows him along, their hands still tied between themselves as they walk over the warm sand. Louis points out the small waterfall that cascades down the rocks and drips right from the sand and into the waves. They walk over to it, putting their belongings down on the sand. 

Louis takes a few pictures of it, and Harry can tell that he’s even taking pictures of Harry standing underneath is, his bare torso glimmering with warm water. Harry doesn’t protest, however, because he loves the idea of Louis wanting memories of a shirtless Harry standing underneath a waterfall. It leaves this feeling of love and desire in his belly, knowing that Louis is attracted to him, all of him. How he was able to resist being with Louis for almost a year is a true mystery. 

“Gonna join me any time soon, baby?” Harry teases, pushing his wet hair out of his face. Louis grins enough for the hint of a dimple to show on his cheek.

“Yeah, sorry, just taking it all in,” Louis says, putting his camera back in his bag and strutting towards Harry. His hands fit themselves on Harry’s hips and he stands up on his toes to press a brief kiss to Harry’s mouth. “Beautiful scenery, beautiful boy, couldn’t resist taking some pictures to remember it all.”

“I know people say flattery gets you nowhere,” Harry starts. “But I find that to be a lie. Flattery will get you into my pants any time of day.”

Louis laughs, loud and bright, the skin by his eyes crinkling with it. Harry loves every inch of this boy so much it aches.

“I’ll hold you to it, then. You need to put on sunscreen, babe, before you burn and bitch about it for the next week.”

“I will not bitch!” Harry cries.

“Right,” Louis rolls his eyes and smiles. “Never.”

“Well you’ll have to put it on for me, because I’m not doing it myself,” Harry challenges and crosses his arms. “So there.”

“I guess I have no choice than to do it for you,” Louis sighs dramatically. “Can’t let my boyfriend get skin cancer, can I? Come here, you big baby.”

Harry grins madly like a child, feeling triumphant for getting what he wants. Louis shoves him playfully away from the waterfall and into the sunlight. Louis pulls a small beach towel from Harry’s backpack and spreads it out over the sand closer to the tide. Harry lays himself down on the towel and folds his arms above him. He looks back at Louis and raises a brow.

“Waiting for you.”

“So bossy,” Louis huffs, digging around in his bag for sunscreen. He grabs the bottle and straddles Harry’s legs, opening up the bottle and pouring a generous amount of cream onto his hand and rubbing them together. His hands spread it over Harry’s toned back, rubbing from his shoulder all the way down to the bottom of his spine. Harry moans in appreciation and lays his head over his forearms.

“Feels good.”

“I’m pretty decent at massages,” Louis says easily. “Not going to give you the full experience today, though. Soon, but I don’t much enjoy giving all these people a show,” he murmurs, leaning down to speak near Harry’s ear.

“I blew you in a Pac Sun, and you won’t give me a massage here?” Harry asks incredulously, turning his face to look at Louis.

“That was different,” Louis laughs. “The door was closed. This is in broad daylight!” 

“Maybe I want them to see us,” Harry replies smugly. 

“You’re filthy!” Louis laughs, swatting at his bicep and then covering it in cream. “You have to do me when I’m done.”

“I’ll do you any time of the day,” Harry smirks.

“So immature,” Louis laughs. “You knew what I meant.”

“I’ll do it both ways.”

Louis giggles and rolls his eyes, crawling off of Harry and plopping besides him. “Get to work, babe. Up, up.”

“Who’s bossy now?”

Harry gets on top of Louis and repeats what Louis just did to him. He’s sure to cover every area of Louis’ back to prevent him from burning. Louis hums with appreciation below him, and the position is just way too obvious, the way Louis is splayed out beneath him. It’s an absolute tease, with his groin crossed against Louis’ backside. It’s not his fault that he can’t contain himself, it’s _not_ , because Louis is so achingly attractive, and his body is right here, ready to be taken, even if he doesn’t know it yet. 

He leans over, pressing his chest to Louis’ back and presses tender open-mouth kisses to the skin of Louis’ neck. Louis purrs and turns his head closer to Harry.

“What exactly do you think you’re doing, Styles?” Louis asks flatly. Harry smirks and nips at the sweat-damp skin.

“You’re so beautiful. I want you every second of every day. I want you now. I want you so, so badly. Can I have you?” Harry murmurs in his ear. He can see Louis visibly twitch, his back muscles tensing for a few brief moments. He can hear the deep intake of breath intake of breath from Louis, all signs that Louis is definitely intrigued. “Is that alright with you?”

“We’re…” Louis trails off, closing his eyes in search for his voice. “Public.”

“So?” Harry mumbles offhandedly. “Nice and private by that little waterfall, right over there. Looks like a perfect place to me.”

“You are,” Louis pauses, taking a ragged breath. “intolerable.”

“And yet,” Harry laughs. “You’re still going to do it.”

Louis laughs, rolling onto his back underneath Harry’s legs and putting his hands on Harry’s hips. “Alright, well, I guess I can’t deny you, like, ever, because you’re a whiny child, but you’re mine, so.”

Harry grins fondly, because even if he’s teasing him, he still makes Harry feel so important. He still claims him in such a wonderful way, still makes him feel loved, even if he doesn’t use that exact terminology. Or at least, not yet.

“All yours,” Harry agrees. “Now, c’mere. Got some lube and condoms in my bag.”

Louis laughs loudly, covering his face with his hands and peeking at Harry threw his fingers. “That’s so embarrassing. I cannot believe how presumptuous you are. How do I put up with you?”

“You somehow manage,” Harry smirks. “Are we doing this or not?”

“Who says I want you?” Louis says, but the glint in his eyes shows he’s only teasing, because he definitely wants this, too. His cock is stiffening underneath Harry and his pupils are blown just a bit more than usual. He can play this game all he wants, but he won’t win.

“This does,” Harry says, grinding his hips against Louis’, making him gasp quietly. “I know you want me, baby.”

Louis sits up and pulls himself out from underneath Harry. He walks away in the direction of the waterfall and Harry throws his head back and laugh, sprinting after him. He finally catches up, tackling him and wrapping him tightly in his arms.

“Let me go you big oaf!” Louis cries, his laughter loud and vibrant.

“Never gonna give you up,” Harry sings and begins to laugh with him. “I need you now.”

Harry drags them to the waterfall, underneath the grey stone and close to the warm water running down in a steady stream. He pulls Louis into him, his arms wrapping around his waist and leaning down to kiss him. Louis wraps his arms around his neck and kissing back with passion, biting Harry’s bottom lip. He can try and say he doesn’t want Harry that badly, and he won’t do anything in public, but actions speak a lot louder than words.

“You do want me,” Harry murmurs, his fingers closing around the tent of his tight shorts. Louis gasps quietly and bites at Harry’s collarbone.

“I want you all the time,” Louis admits. “Wanted you for so fucking long. Finally got you.”

Harry could come just from those words, really. It’s so mind-blowing that this whole time, they were on the same page. They were both pining for something they thought they couldn’t have, both too nervous to take a risk and just go for it. But it doesn’t matter, because Harry plans to make up for a lot of lost time.

“Need to get inside of you,” Harry admits, his voice wavering. It’s almost like being drunk, his head swimming and finding it very hard to get his brain to filter his mouth properly. He can’t think of anything other than Louis right now. Well, Louis and his aching cock.

“Yeah, yeah,” Louis nods quickly. “How do you want me?”

Harry wants to cry when he hears that. Louis is so concerned about pleasing him, putting him first and asking what _Harry_ wants. It’s a little overwhelming. It’s nothing like a one night stand, neither of them selfish. They’re both attentive to their partner and their wants and needs, and it isn’t just about getting themselves off. It’s a give and take.

“Here,” Harry instructs, turning Louis around and putting him against the cool stone one hand under the waterfall. Louis turns his face to smile over his shoulder at Harry. He reaches out his hand and Harry takes it, like an anchor. Harry kisses the back of it and gives it a squeeze. “Ready for this?”

“Always,” Louis breathes.

Harry takes his free hand and pushes his tight shorts down, exposing his plump, lovely ass. It’s a bit difficult to manage with only one hand, but he’s incredibly reluctant to let go of Louis.

“Have the stuff?” Louis asks, his voice already airy.

“Backpack,” Harry responds. “Be right back.”

He kisses between Louis’ shoulder blades and rushes to his bag, pulling out the travel size lube and a condom and sprints back over. He doesn’t want to leave Louis waiting too long, especially so exposed and vulnerable to anyone’s prying eyes. They picked the right beach, though, because there are very few people around and they all seem to be minding their own business.

“Guess who?” Harry whispers in Louis’ ear, putting one hand on his hip.

“If this isn’t my boyfriend Harry, I’m in a lot of trouble,” Louis teases.

“It’s a good thing it is me, because he’d be in trouble, too,” Harry laughs, kissing his shoulder. “Ready for me?”

“Been ready, Haz. Jesus, c’mon, been waiting long enough,” Louis whines, which is typical Louis, really.

“Alright, sorry,” Harry chuckles, pulling down his own shorts and rolling the condom on. He hisses at the sudden contact on his dick after being left alone and hard for so long. He slicks up his fingers with lube and presses one against Louis’ tight hole with gentle force, just enough to get him to open up. Louis whines quietly and his head falls forward. 

“That okay?” Harry asks softly, keeping his finger just halfway in, waiting for the okay from Louis.

“Yeah,” Louis responds quietly. Harry kisses his shoulder again and presses forward, wiggling in a second finger gently. Louis hums softly and pushes his hips back to meet Harry.

“So lovely,” Harry praises. “So tight and warm. Can’t wait to get inside of you again. Love being inside of you, baby.” The words ‘love _you_ want to slip out, but Harry bites his tongue to stop it. It’s not the right time at all. It’s still too early, and he doesn’t think it’d be very romantic to admit his love balls deep inside of Louis on a beach. There’s probably a better time for that. 

A third finger presses into Louis, making him whimper, but he’s still trying to get more. Harry pulls his fingers apart gently and whispers in Louis’ ear “don’t touch, okay? Come from me, just me. Just my cock.”

“Yes,” Louis hisses. “You.”

Harry can tell Louis is losing coherency, fumbling for words, and his short answers make that clear. Well, he’s already this far gone, so Harry plans to push him all the way. He removes his fingers slowly, slick and warm, from Louis’ readied hole.

“Think you’re ready?” Harry asks, pressing the tip of his cock against his hole, but not hard enough to penetrate. Louis whines and tries to force himself onto it, signaling that, yeah, he’s ready. “Words, baby.”

“Yes,” Louis moans impatiently. Harry knows he won’t last very long, but Harry probably won’t, either. Louis is so much better than anyone he’s ever been with before, and it’s still all so new. Harry hasn’t built up his tolerance to him yet. He doesn’t know if he ever will. 

Harry finally presses in, so, so, slowly, in fear of coming too soon. Louis is so tight that he’s afraid of busting second he enters him. One of Louis hands fumbles, looking around for Harry. Harry takes it by the back and puts his own palm over it and laying them on Louis’ stomach.

“I’ve got you, baby. I’m right here,” Harry murmurs in his ear, pressing himself fully inside of him. Louis’ head falls back onto Harry’s shoulder and his lips are parted slightly. He’s a gorgeous sight. 

“You know, this is super convenient this way,” Harry says casually, shallowly and slowly thrusting into Louis. “We’ve got this lovely waterfall to wash off after. It’s like shower sex with better scenery. Have the water right here for us.”

Louis tries to laugh, but it gets caught in his throat and gets traded in for a moan. Harry grins with satisfaction and squeezes Louis’ hand, thrusting up faster and harder. Louis cries out and Harry knows he’s just nailed his prostate. He tries to not let it go to his head at how good he is at getting Louis to fall apart. 

“Harry,” Louis gasps, pushing his hips back desperately. His knees start to buckle, so Harry holds him up with both arms, fucking into him harder. Louis sobs, falling against the stone and coming hard. Harry slows his hips a little bit, not wanting to hurt him at all.

“That’s my boy,” Harry murmurs, squeezing his middle. “Almost, baby, almost.”

Louis’ muscles constrict violent during the aftershock of his orgasm, and it’s that that pushes Harry over the edge, forcing himself fully inside of Louis and coming with a low moan. He rides it out slowly until he stills his hips and pulls out. Louis turns around and slumps against the stone, letting the water run over his body.

“Fuck.”

“Well, never done that before.”

“Never,” Louis laughs. “But I think I’m going to have a lot of firsts with you.”

It’s so vague, and it could mean anything, but it makes Harry’s insides warm anyway. There’s so much possibility for it. Harry pulls him in for a messy kiss.

They clean themselves off a little with the waterfall water and get dressed again, Harry tossing the condom into a tissue to dispose of later. He doesn’t much feel like polluting the earth with his used condoms. 

After they’re properly dressed again, they hold hands and walk into the ocean, feeling the warm saltwater surrounding them.

“This place is so stunning,” Louis says, Harry’s arms wrapped around his middle and Louis’ head on his shoulder, overlooking the amazing stretch of the Pacific. 

“Isn’t it? I love it here. We used to come when I was growing up and I was trying to learn how to skimboard. I’m awful at it, I’ve learned, and after breaking my wrist I finally quit,” Harry admits with a smile. “I’m not the most coordinated, as you know.”

“Yeah, you should just stick to the gym, big guy,” Louis laughs, patting his hand that’s laying over his stomach. “Don’t want you accidentally dying on me.”

“I’ll try my best,” Harry jokes, kissing the side of Louis’ neck. Louis smiles and nuzzles closer to Harry.  
~  
The rest of the day is peaceful and pretty uneventful. Louis takes more pictures, they cuddle on their large beach blanket, and they kiss enough to run out of air more than once.

Once the sun starts to set and the air starts to get chilly, Louis curls further into Harry’s body for warmth. Harry rubs up and down his arms for heat. “Want to get going? I think your teeth are chattering, babe.”

“Easily cold,” Louis laughs softly. “Anemic, or somethin’, I think they said.”

“I don’t want you to get sick or anything. C’mon, we’ll go and grab dinner somewhere. Maybe a burger or something,” Harry says, sitting up and gathering their belongings.

“Mm, with onion rings,” Louis hums.

“And fries,” Harry adds.

“We’ll share,” Louis says, sitting up and kissing Harry’s shoulder.

“Perfect.”

They get all their belongings in their bags and head back to their van, being just about the only ones left on the beach. They link hands again as they walk and Harry opens up the door for Louis. He throws their bags in the back and gets into the driver’s seat. He turns the car on and Louis turns up the radio, making their playlist even louder. Harry looks at him from the corner of his eye and grins.

“Growing on you?”

“A little,” Louis shrugs with a small smile. . Harry reaches his hand out to squeeze his thigh and can’t seem to stop grinning during their drive.  
~  
 _May 19th, Northern California_

As they say, everything that’s good comes to an end. Nothing can stay as pure and golden as it has been since they got together. They, eventually, had to face some problems down the road, like every couple does. Theirs happens in the afternoon after grabbing lunch at a diner.

“Shit,” Harry mumbles, pulling off the road as the engine makes some very not good sounds. Louis looks over at him with furrowed eyebrows.

“What’s happening?” Louis asks slowly.

“Uh, I don’t know,” Harry says. He cuts the engine and sits in his seat for a moment. “But I don’t think we’re going anywhere any time soon.”

“We should call Triple A or something,” Louis says, pulling out his phone but Harry stops him.

“No, I can fix this,” Harry assures. “We don’t need any help.”

“Have you ever fixed a car before?” Louis asks carefully.

“Well, no, but I doubt it’s very hard,” Harry shrugs. Louis sighs and Harry opens the door. He gets out of the car and opens up the hood of the car, which, okay, there’s smoke rising. A lot. That might make things a little bit harder. 

“How does it look?” Louis asks, walking besides him.

“Uh, well, not great, but I think I can handle it.”

“Alright, well, I’ll be in the car. Unless, you think it’s going to explode? Then I’ll wait outside.”

“It’s not going to explode,” Harry snaps, and Louis holds his hands up in surrender.

“Alright, fine. I’ll be in the van, then.”

Louis turns around and gets back in the van and Harry sighs, staring at the inside of the van intently. He really, really doesn’t know anything about cars, but he doesn’t need help. He can do this himself. He’s perfectly capable of handling this on his own. 

 

He cracks his knuckles and puts his hands in the hood, messing around with all the little knobs and tubes and whatever they’re called. It continues to smoke, though, and he really, really doesn’t know what he’s doing.

“Can I call Triple A now?” Louis asks, peeking his head out of his open window.

“I’ve got it!” Harry yells, his frustration bubbling to the surface.

“Harry, it’s been twenty minutes and you’ve had no success. Can you please just drop this whole pride act and let me call for help?” Louis sighs tiredly.

“No! Can you just shut up and let me work?!”

“Jesus, Harry, you’re being so childish!” Louis snaps back, all patience gone. _Childish_. The word causes anger to flare inside of Harry. Childish. What his dad always called him, since he was never good enough for him. To his father, he’d never be mature enough to take charge of his business. He would always be a child, and Louis thought so, too.

“It’s not like you don’t have the money to pay for it!”

That breaks something in Harry. He was already on edge because of the childish comment, but now he’s pushed over the edge and he can’t stop his mouth. “Yeah, because you have no issues spending _my_ money!”

Louis’ mouth snaps shut immediately. He gets out of the car and slams the door shut, walking down the road.

“Where the fuck are you going?” Harry calls. Louis ignores him, which, Harry doesn’t blame him for. “Louis!”

“I knew this was going to become an issue. I knew this whole money thing would cause a fight. I knew this would come to bite me in the ass. I should have never agreed to this,” Louis says coldly, kicking the pavement under his feet.

Harry feels guilty automatically. He’s the one that offered to bring Louis along and pay for everything. He said it was no problem, and now he’s throwing it all in his face. He feels like an asshole.

“Look, Louis-“ Harry starts, but he’s cut off.

“No, you don’t get to talk right now. I’m not going to let you hurt me in that kind of way. You asked me to come, I didn’t ask you. I was planning to go home and work, and I probably should have done just that.”

It’s like a stab, really. If he didn’t come, they wouldn’t have gotten together, and they wouldn’t have made so many memories together, and he’s regretting all of it. Harry can’t really handle that.

“Where are you going?”

“I don’t know,” Louis says. “I’m just angry and don’t want to be around you right now. Can you respect that, or do I have to give you money to make you stop?”

“Louis-“

“What did I just say?” Louis says tiredly. “Can you just leave me alone? I need to think.”

Harry sighs and runs a hand over his face. “Okay, fine. I’m going to call for help.”

“You do that,” Louis chides. Harry clenches his fists and grabs his phone from his pocket. He calls Triple A and explains what happened and his location and they say they’ll be there within the hour. Harry hangs up and groans, sitting down on the side of the road and pulling his knees into his chest.

Help does eventually come, and Louis is sitting far, far away from him, staring out at the road. Their almost-hour wait is in complete silence, which doesn’t surprise Harry. He deserves the silent treatment after what he said. He really, really needs to fix this if he doesn’t want to be single again, and doesn’t want to lose Louis. 

They wait for the van to get fixed and Louis stands with his arms over his chest, bouncing his leg. Harry gets out his wallet but Louis pulls his out faster, handing over some crumpled bills.

“Lou, I’ve got it,” Harry says.

“Nope. I’m the one who wanted to call,” Louis says without looking at Harry.

“Louis, c’mon.”

“Shut up,” Louis says, thanking the man and watching him get back in his truck. Louis retreats to the passenger side of the van and gets in, crossing his arms again. Harry throws his head back with a groan and gets into the driver's side.

“Are you going to be mad at me the rest of the trip?” Harry asks, turning the engine on, thankfully, without any sort of smoke or ominous noises.

“Still deciding,” Louis says.

“C’mon, baby. I’m sorry for what I said. I just got mad about the car and frustrated that I couldn’t fix it myself,” Harry tries, but Louis turns his head to the side.

“I don’t want to hear it right now. Just drive. I’m not done ignoring you yet.”

“Fine, okay, fair,” Harry says, pulling away from the curb and getting back on the road. The ride is quiet other than their playlist still playing on a loop. 

The problem is, Harry knows he was being childish. He knows he deserved what he got, and he knows that he started this. His father was right about him, and that’s what’s the worst part of it all. He wouldn’t be able to run the business, because he couldn’t handle it. He isn’t mature enough for that, never would be. His father knew he would end up a failure, and that’s all coming true. Harry knows it now, and now, Louis even knows it, knows he isn’t man enough. He’s a big baby about everything, stomping his foot when he doesn’t get his way. He’s a disappointment. 

Harry wants to confess it all to Louis, pour his heart out until he’s empty, but Louis doesn’t even want to talk to him. He needs to make it up to him in a big way before he can explain himself, and definitely come up with a massive apology to get him to talk to him again.  
~  
They pass a wine vineyard when they get into Napa Valley, and that’s when it hits him. It might not fix everything, but a few days away staying in a romantic hotel with a gorgeous view and never-ending supply of wine sounds like a pretty great start.

Harry pulls into it the long drive, a sign reading _Jamieson Ranch Vineyards_. Louis looks over to him, and Harry can tell he doesn’t want to speak to him, but he’s also shit when it comes to surprises.

“What are we doing?”

“I thought this would be nice,” Harry shrugs. “A thank you for paying for the van. Besides, I’m getting tired of sleeping in here every night. Thought I could splurge for a hotel for a night or two and drink some wine while we’re at it. Is that okay?”

Louis snorts. “Oh, great, you’re going to spend even more money on me. You go and stay in the hotel, I’m staying here. Wouldn’t want to make you spend any more money than you already have.”

“Louis, quit it,” Harry sighs. “Please? It’ll be really nice. Look, it’s beautiful here. It’ll be so romantic. C’mon, please, Lou.”

“Fine,” Louis says shortly. “Whatever.”

Okay, well, this is a lot harder than Harry originally thought it would be. Louis is quite good at holding a grudge, as it turns out. He isn’t very surprised.

When they park, they get out of the car and Louis trails behind him, refusing to even talk to Harry. Harry hopes he’s going to change his mind once they get inside. The place is truly beautiful, and he imagines the inside is just as lovely. It feels like they’re right in Italy.

They walk in and Harry is definitely not disappointed by the beauty of it all. It’s so romantic and cozy and a perfect place for Louis to forgive Harry. Maybe. Hopefully.

“Hi, I’d like to book a room,” Harry smiles at the receptionist.

“Wonderful. For how many nights?”

“Two, please.”

Louis scoffs behind him and Harry tries not to snap. “Spending even more money,” Louis mutters.

“So…two nights?” the man asks, fixing his glasses on his nose.

“Yes, thank you.”

“Perfect. You will be in room 110,” he smiles, handing over the key card. “Enjoy your stay.”

“Thank you,” Harry gives him a charming smile. “We’re just going to go grab our luggage.”

“Of course, sir.”

Harry walks back outside and Louis doesn’t even bother following him. Harry breathes heavily through his nose and grabs both of their rucksacks. He throws them over his shoulder and locks up the van, heading back into the hotel. Louis is sitting in one of the lobby chairs with his legs crossed and looking stoic. Harry really, really pissed him off, apparently. He’s really fucked up this time.

“I got your bag. Do you want to check out our room?” Harry asks. Louis doesn’t reply but he stands up and heads to their room, Harry following after him. Harry opens the door for them and the room is amazing. There’s an incredible view of the vineyard with a large balcony and a table set up, a bottle of champagne sitting on it waiting for them. The vineyard looks like it stretches on forever, and the wooden doors opening up to show them the view are so authentic and traditional looking. The bed is a king size with lots of pillow and looks as soft as a cloud, and from what Harry can see, there’s a large porcelain bathtub in the bathroom.

“Nice, isn’t it?” Harry smiles over at Louis. “Like Italy.”

Louis shrugs. “I guess.”

“Louis, please,” Harry sighs, putting their bags down by the open window, feeling the warm summer breeze blowing in. “We need to talk. C’mere.”

Harry moves to the bed and sits on the end, patting the space next to him. Louis reluctantly moves and sits beside him, leaving a gap. Harry reaches his hand over and puts it on Louis’ thigh, and thankfully, doesn’t get it shoved off.

“Listen, baby, we need to talk about what happened. I’m sorry for what I said. I was angry and frustrated and I just snapped. I wanted to know I could fix it myself. I didn’t want to need help. I wanted to seem like a real man,” Harry explains. Louis’ cold shoulder melts and his silence is broken.

“What the hell do you mean, real man? What kind of bullshit is that?” Louis asks, bewildered.

“Shit I picked up from my dad, I guess,” Harry shrugs sadly. “He made me feel like I would never be a man, I would always be just a boy. I would always be an immature, childish boy who wouldn’t amount to anything. You said yourself I was childish and I just…I snapped, because now you think the same thing as him. Everyone knows I’m a total loser.”

“Oh my god,” Louis shakes his head, turning towards Harry putting a hand on his neck. “Is that what this is about, Harry? Because you think I find you childish and not a man? You’re more of a man than your father will ever be. I don’t care that he owned a company or was rich or any of that, because you…you have a heart. You would never belittle others the way your father belittled you, and that makes you an incredible man. You’re kind,” he murmurs, pressing a soft kiss to Harry’s jaw. “You’re generous,” a kiss on his neck. “You’re smart,” a kiss to his cheek. “You’re loving,” a kiss to the corner of his mouth. “And I love you for all that you are. You are not your father, and everything he’s ever said was wrong about you. You are so much more than he will ever be, and I’m proud of you for being your own person.”

Harry’s heart feels three sizes too big for his chest, and he doesn’t know if he’s even breathed since Louis said the words ‘I love you’. All this time, Harry has wanted to blurt it out, but thought Louis didn’t feel the same, so he bit his tongue. And now, here they were, Louis confessing his love even during a fight.

“You love me?” Harry breathes, and Louis rolls his eyes.

“That’s the only thing you got from that little speech?” he asks with a small smile.

“No, no, but…you love me?”

“That’s why I said it. I don’t lie. You should know that by now,” Louis says, playing with the hair on the back of Harry’s neck. 

“No, I know you don’t,” Harry says quickly. “I just can’t believe you love me. I’ve…I’ve loved you for so long, Louis, and I was afraid to tell you. But now that I know you love me, I’m going to say it all the time.”

“You better,” Louis murmurs, pressing a kiss to his lips. “Don’t make me mad again.”

“I’ll try my best not to. What I said was stupid and I didn’t mean it at all. I know that you and your family have had some money problems and I should never use that against you. I just…I was so hurt and I wanted you to understand that pain. I wanted you to feel what I was feeling. I didn’t mean it, though. I love spending money on you and knowing you’re enjoying yourself. Don’t feel like you owe me or anything like that, because you don’t. I just want to know you’re having a good time, and that’s enough for me,” Harry says, squeezing Louis’ hips. 

“Yeah, I know,” Louis breathes. “I know you didn’t mean it. I just worry about us having such an imbalanced relationship. I don’t want this to become some underlying problem that causes tension and is the eventual downfall of us. Can you understand my anger?”

“Yeah, I get it,” Harry sighs. “It was fucked up of me, I know. My mouth opened before I got to think about it. I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean a word of it.”

“I know, baby. I’m sorry for snapping at you, too, because that wasn’t right of me, either. We were both wrong about this, and we’ve finally handled this like adults. We were both being children, but now we’re talking it out like a mature, healthy couple. We’ve got this under control,” Louis smiles. 

“We’re all grown up, I suppose,” Harry grins.

“We’re in a vineyard like a proper old couple, too. Napa Valley, even,” Louis smirks.

“Hey,” Harry frowns. “It’s romantic!”

“I know, baby, but it’s Napa Valley,” Louis laughs, putting his forehead on Harry’s shoulder. “We’re definitely the youngest ones here, babe.”

“So what?” Harry shrugs. “They can envy us and our youthful energy and stamina.”

“You’re ridiculous,” Louis laughs again. “How do I tolerate you?”

“You love me too much.”

“Mm,” Louis hums. That’s really enough of an answer. 

 

“So, what do you want to do? Do you want to go explore a little bit? Have a few glasses of wine?” Harry asks.

“Yeah, that sounds good to me,” Louis says, looking up at Harry. “I could get drunk in the middle of the day.”

“Not too drunk, babe. Want to have some fun with you later on and that requires you still able to still be able to get it up. Don’t want alcohol compromising that,” Harry says, his thumb grazing closely to Louis’ dick.

“Oh, well, if you put it that way, I’ll make sure I’m good and alert and ready to go,” Louis says, biting his lip. 

“That’s a good idea,” Harry grins. “I have a lot of plans for you, so we should both take it easy.”

“We’ll watch out for each other,” Louis promises. “Now c’mon, let’s do it now before I end up unable to leave this bed because I’m shoving your cock into my mouth.”

“That sounds more appealing than wine,” Harry hums. “Maybe we should just stay here.”

“Uh uh, wine first,” Louis grins. “I get…handsy when I’m drunk, as you know. I also seem to lose a lot of my inhibitions…”

His hands trail down Harry’s torso and Harry grins at him. “Alright, well, we definitely need to get you a drink.”

“Let’s go,” Louis giggles and grabs his hand, tugging him along. 

They end up tagging along on one of the wine tours that’s just started. They get tipsy on wine and stuffed on food and take tons of pictures of everything and of each other. The wine is so much better than the boxed stuff they’re used to, since it’s cheapest. They have great food samples to go with every wine, like cheese and crackers and eventually bites of dessert to go with the sweet wines. 

Louis’ cheeks are flushed pink and his hair is slightly out of place from constantly burrowing his head into Harry’s shoulders and chest. His eyes have an extra shine to them, glassy and bright. Harry keeps a hand on his lower back or an arm around his waist the whole time to ensure he won’t topple over. He’s giggly and, as he warned he would be, handsy. Harry has to do his best not to throw Louis over his shoulder and bring him back to their room to fuck him senseless. 

Louis’ tolerance is obviously a lot lower than Harry’s, since he’s a lot further gone than Harry. But that could be because Harry weighs more and it doesn’t take as big a toll on his body. He’s relieved when the tour finally ends and Harry can lead Louis back to their room.

“Alright, you, we need to get you into bed,” Harry laughs, opening the door.

“Only want to get into bed if you’re planning to fuck me,” Louis says, slightly slurred.

“Mm, you gonna stay awake for it?” Harry teases.

“Yes,” Louis scoffs, grinding himself onto Harry’s hip. “I’m already so hard, Harry. Please fuck me?”

“Wow, you have more manners when you’re drunk than when you’re sober. Amazing.”

“Harry!” Louis whines, pushing Harry into the room and closing the door behind them. He shoves him onto the bed and scrambles to get on top of him. “Need you to fuck me, Haz.”

“Alright, alright,” Harry laughs. “Gotta calm down before you come in your pants, though. Don’t want that. Want you to come on my cock.”

“Yeah, yeah, your cock,” Louis nods. 

Harry rolls them over and spreads Louis’ legs, placing himself between them and grinding himself against him. He kisses down Louis’ neck and bites at the skin, Louis moaning loudly and being extremely responsive. They should drink more often.

“C’mon, Harry, don’t fuck around,” Louis whines. “Just want you to get in me.”

“I have something better planned first,” Harry tells him, smirking. “Said you lose your inhibitions when you’re drunk, yeah?”

“Suppose so,” Louis giggles. “What are you going to do to me? I’ve already left you up my ass.”

“You’ll see. All in good time,” Harry says, unbuttoning Louis’ jeans and pushing them down. He undresses himself as quickly as he can, throwing his clothes somewhere with Louis’. Louis wiggles under him, as if he’s trying to help, but it’s only making everything more difficult. “Stop moving,” he laughs, pushing Louis into the mattress. “You aren’t helping.”

Louis giggles some more and lies pliant, finally. Harry yanks his pants off all the way and tosses them off the bed, along with his underwear. Louis pulls off his own shirt, but gets tangled in it and becomes a giggling mess.

“I’m stuck! It’s dark! Help!” Louis cries, his stomach moving with his bubbling laughter.

“Jesus,” Harry laughs, helping Louis out of his shirt. “You don’t drink often, do you? This stuff went right to you. Did you sneak more while I wasn’t looking or something?”

“Nooo,” Louis smirks. “Course not.”

“Hey,” Harry says softly, more seriously. “I love you, you know.”

Louis smiles and runs his fingers through his hair, seeming more sober. “I know. I love you, too.”

“Just really wanted to make sure you knew that,” Harry smiles, pressing his lips to Louis’ chest.

“Yeah, I did. But I like the reminder,” Louis says softly, scratching his scalp. 

“Is there anything you like?” Harry asks, circling his thumb around Louis’ nipple. “Like, sexually? Any like, weird kinks? Well, not weird if you like them; I won’t think they’re weird. Or I might, but I won’t say it out loud.”

“Are you quite finished?” Louis teases.

“Yeah,” Harry sighs. “Just making sure you don’t feel like I’m judging you or something.”

“I know you won’t. I don’t have any super weird kinks, I don’t think,” Louis shrugs, averting his eyes.

“You can tell me. I was just joking about calling it weird, you know that. I’ll work with you, whatever it is,” Harry says quietly, running his fingers up and down Louis’ ribcage.

“I know you were, babe. It’s really nothing, though.”

“It’s something if it makes you feel good,” Harry pries. “I want to do whatever I can to make you feel better than anyone has ever made you feel, but you’re going to need to trust me. Please?”

“I do trust you, it’s just…a little embarrassing, is all. Like, childish,” Louis mumbles.

“Do you want to call me daddy?” Harry asks seriously. Louis cracks a smile and shakes his head.

“No, that’s not what I meant by childish.”

“Then what is it?”

“I just…like to be praised. Like, I like when you talk to me during sex and tell me I’m good. I’m the oldest and I had all little sisters who my parents fawned over and everyone fawned over, basically, because they were cute in their dresses and braids with their dolls. I was sort of looked over, I guess, because I was older and a boy so I didn’t get as much attention. So I like when a guy puts all his focus on me and tells me I’m…good,” Louis says, his voice small and shy. Harry smiles and presses his mouth to Louis’.

“I think that’s a wonderful kink,” Harry whispers. “Afraid you were going to say something crazy, like you wanted me to shit in your mouth. Yours is an easy one. I would do that even if you didn’t tell me.”

Louis giggles and bites his lip. “I’ve never told anyone that before.”

“I’m glad you told me. I want to know all the little things about you, if you’ll let me.”

“I want that, too,” Louis replies. “Now you have to tell me what your kink is.”

“I think it’s better if I show you,” Harry grins wickedly. Louis’ features scrunch up but Harry doesn’t explain any further. 

Instead, he trails open-mouth kisses down Louis’ naked body. Louis squirms a little underneath him, so Harry puts his hands on his hips and holds him down. Louis gasps and looks down at him.

“Getting a little rough? Is that your kink?” he asks.

“It can be,” Harry shoots him a grin. “Sometimes. But that’s not what I’m doing now.”

Louis sighs dramatically and falls back into the pillows. Harry gets down to his groin and doesn’t give a second glance to his hard cock sitting on his belly. He’s sure that’s what Louis thought he was going for, but that isn’t his goal right now. He has something much better in mind.

Louis’ hands tangle themselves in Harry’s hair and Harry opens up Louis’ legs and throws them over his shoulders. Louis holds himself up on his elbows to look down at Harry and tugs at his hair a little.

“What are you doing?”

“Did you think my kink was blowing you? Sorry to disappoint you, babe, but that’s not it.”

“Then, what…” he trails off, cutting off completely when Harry’s tongue licks at his hole. “Woah! What the hell?!”

“Hey, shh, baby, it’s alright,” Harry murmurs, kissing his inner thigh. “It’s good. Can I?”

“You…you like doing this?” Louis asks, shocked.

“I do,” Harry replies honestly. “I really, really do. Just let me, okay?”

“Okay,” Louis says quickly, slowly lying back down. Harry rubs his hipbones with the pads of his thumbs and nuzzles his nose at his perineum.

“Gonna be so good for me, baby. Gonna open you up nice and good with my tongue, then fill you with my cock, just the way you like it. Do you want that?”

“Yes,” Louis breathes, his hands buried in his curls. 

Harry smiles and licks at his hole again without any pressure, just to get him adjusted to such a new sensation. His tongue traces the skin of his most intimate place and he can hear Louis’ sharp intake of breath. He smiles triumphantly and offers Louis a hand.

“Here, baby, take this and squeeze when it’s too much,” Harry instructs. “Doing so well for me.”

Louis completely falls apart on Harry’s tongue, and he tries not to have too much pride in it, but. . . Harry’s hands find themselves on Louis’ inner thighs, pressing his legs further apart. He presses his tongue in, finally, opening him up. Louis’ fingers twitch in Harry’s hair and he moans above him, his voice already sounding hoarse. 

Harry barely even notices how close Louis is just from light teasing and stretching from his tongue. His back arches off the bed, though, and Louis cries out, squeezing Harry’s hand tightly and yanking on his hair before coming, untouched, onto his belly.

“Oh my god,” Louis says, his voice shaky and his thighs trembling. “Oh my god, oh my god.”

“Good?” Harry smirks, looking up between his legs.

“So, so, so good,” Louis says quietly. “We’re doing that again. A lot. All the time. As often as we can.”

Harry laughs and kisses his belly. “Told you you would like it. You’ve been missing out.”

“Fuck yeah,” Louis sighs. “Jesus, you’re so good at everything, aren’t you? Is there anything you’re not fantastic at?”

“Mm,” Harry pretends to ponder. “Not that I can find.”

Louis laughs breathlessly and pulls Harry up towards him by his hair. They kiss sloppily and Harry reaches blindly for a condom and the lube he put besides the bed earlier.

“Want me to fuck you?”

“I don’t know if I can come again,” Louis laughs. “You really took it out of me, tiger.”

“Willing to try?” Harry grins, kissing down Louis’ neck.

“Mm, well, I can’t say no to that, can I? You’ll never know if you never try, and all that jazz.”

“Mhm,” Harry hums. “Exactly.”

Harry opens up the lube and spreads some on his fingers, pushing his middle finger into Louis slowly. Louis hums happily and wraps his arms around Harry’s neck.

“Feels good,” he murmurs.

“Feel a little opened from your tongue. ‘s nice.”

“That was the plan,” Harry grins. “You like it?”

“Yeah. Just need you to fuck me, now.”

“Mm, we’ll get there,” Harry says, forcing a second finger in with little difficulty. Louis sighs and grips onto Harry’s shoulders, digging his fingers into his muscles.

“Want you in me now. Don’t want more prep. Want to be extra tight for you.”

“You’re sure?” Harry asks, surprised. “I don’t want you in any pain, though, babe.”

“Won’t be,” Louis assures him. “Two is enough. Want to feel the stretch of that fat cock.”

“Oh, god,” Harry growls. “You’re so hot.”

“I try,” Louis smirks. “C’mon, baby, please. I need you.”

“I’ve got you,” Harry promises. “Been such a good boy for me, haven’t you? Gonna take my cock so nicely, too.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Louis nods, arching his back slightly, his chest flushed. Harry scissors his fingers in rapid succession a few times before pulling them out and wiping them on the sheets. He reaches for the condom but Louis beats him to it. “Let me do the honors.”

Harry grins and watches Louis rip the package with his teeth and rolls the condom onto his cock, gripping it teasingly. Harry bucks into his hand with a moan.

“Gotta stop before I come,” Harry warns. “Gotta get inside of you first, yeah? Gotta give my good boy what he wants.”

Louis whimpers and nods, letting go of Harry’s cock. He lies back and spread his legs further, waiting for Harry. Harry grips at his cock and presses it against Louis’ puffy hole. Louis gasps as Harry’s tip forces itself in, Harry biting his lip to try and get passed the intense tightness engulfing him. 

“Fuck, you feel so good. I won’t last,” Harry warns, pushing slowly inside. “You’re so good. You’re the best I’ve ever had, ever will have. All I want to have is you, all the time. Love feeling you around me, love having you to myself. So wonderful, so amazing.”

Louis whines, closing his eyes tightly, as if trying to prolong his orgasm. Harry feels for him, he really does. He grips Louis’ hips and fucks up into him, hard and shallow. He forces Louis’ body up with each thrust, and Louis throws his head back. Harry takes that as a signal to suck on the skin there. 

“Yeah, yeah, fuck,” Louis moans. “I’m gonna, fuck, I’m gonna, ungh!”

“I’ve got you,” Harry murmurs, biting into his neck. “Gonna get you there, baby. Been so good for me, making me feel so good. Gonna make me come so hard, aren’t you, baby?”

“Yes, yes, want you to come in me,” Louis begs. “Please.”

“I will, baby. You deserve it, yeah? So good.”

Louis is so responsive to the praise, and Harry is so glad he’s figured out that special little trigger on him. Harry wants him to come over the edge, just like he did on his tongue, so he wraps his fingers around Louis aching cock and tugs on it slowly, running his thumb over the leaking slit. Louis cries out, his fingernails scratching down Harry’s back as he comes all stomach once again, adding to the mess.

Watching Louis’ orgasm wash over him pulls Harry over the edge, too, biting Louis’ collarbone and forcing his cock all the way into Louis and coming harshly into the condom. Louis shakes through the aftershocks and closes his eyes, his breathing labored and his belly rising and falling quickly.

Harry pulls out carefully, respecting Louis’ spent body. He tosses out the condom and dropping onto the bed besides Louis. He looks over at Louis and grins.

“That okay?”

“Fuck,” Louis breathes. “Yes. That was amazing. Now we’re both happy.”

“Very happy. We should really shower, especially you. You’ve made quite a mess,” Harry smirks, nodding towards his come-covered stomach.

“Which was your fault,” Louis shoots back. “I’m way too tired for a shower, though. I need a nap first. Two orgasms with no break in between? Exhausting.”

“We’re going for three next time,” Harry winks. “Think you can handle that?”

“I might pass out, but I’m willing to try,” Louis grins. “As long as you eat me out, we’ve got a deal.”

“Oh, trust me, I will.”

“Good,” Louis grins, rolling himself onto Harry. “Orrr, you can do it again right now.”

Harry smirks and gives both of his cheeks a light smack. “Get up here and take a seat, then.”  
~  
After leaving the vineyard more rested and sated, they’re only about an hour away from Harry’s hometown. Harry considers making the trip over to visit his parents and introduce them to his boyfriend. They’ve obviously seen Louis on more than one occasion, but not as his boyfriend, and that seems like an important step.

“We’re close to my house,” Harry mentions as they eat at a Burger King at one of the rest stops. “Just about an hour.”

“Oh, really?” Louis asks, taking one of Harry’s fries without asking, as usual.

“Yeah. Do you want to go? Meet my parents?”

“I’ve met your parents, babe,” Louis laughs. “We’ve gone out to dinner, too. Even met your sister.”

“I know, but now you’re my boyfriend. It’s different, isn’t it? You’re not just my roommate anymore,” Harry reasons. Louis smiles at that.

“Okay. That sounds…pretty nice, I think. We can go. It’ll be nice to see them again, anyway. Haven’t seen them in a while, and you should really pay a visit since you’re spending a chunk of the summer away from them.”

“That’s true,” Harry frowns. “My mom was pretty bummed.”

“I’m sure. She doesn’t have her baby with her for an even longer amount of time. It’s bad enough you’ve been gone all year,” Louis says. “But now even the summer.”

“Are you trying to make me feel guilty or just cry?” Harry asks.

“Sorry,” Louis grins. “I did the same to my parents, and I’m halfway across the country. But they know we’re growing up and we want to explore while we still have the chance.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Harry responds. “But it would totally make her day to see us, and to hear I have a boyfriend. Wait until she finds out it’s you. I bet you five bucks she’s going to cry. She probably loves you more than me, really. She’s always asking about you.”

“I know,” Louis says triumphantly. “I knew from when she friended me on Facebook the day we moved in.”

“She’s so embarrassing,” Harry laughs with a shake of his head. “Gotta love her.”

“Well, you have to get the trait from somewhere, no?” Louis grins.

“Not nice!” Harry pouts.

“It was a compliment, babe,” Louis promises, putting his hand on Harry’s and squeezing. “You’re both very lovely people.”

“You’re not so bad yourself, baby,” Harry smiles. “So we’ll go?”

“Yeah, your boyfriend is ready to meet your family,” Louis grins.

“I love you,” Harry says, more seriously. “A lot.”

“I love you, too, Haz.”

“A lot?” Harry asks, his lip quirking up.

“Yes, a lot,” Louis assures him, squeezing his hand. “More than you’ll ever know, probably.”

Harry doesn’t think that’s possible.  
~  
They drive into Harry’s hometown, which isn’t anything too big or fancy. They have everything they need around, and it was always a homey place for Harry. He always felt safe and comforted in his town, and he was definitely nervous to move all the way to Washington; to a much bigger city. It proved not to be too bad, though, since Louis was with him the whole way and helped him adjust to living so far from home.

“Nice house,” Louis says in awe, pulling into the large private-gated home.

“Well, he _did _own an oil tycoon,” Harry defends weakly. “I think you’re underestimating how much money my father actually had.”__

__“I forget,” Louis says. “All I have is a small New York apartment. I mean, it’s still expensive, because it’s New York, but you get my point. This is gorgeous, though. Like, insanely gorgeous. It’s big but still looks homey, if that makes any sense.”_ _

__“No, it is. Wait until you see the inside. My mom likes the cozy, traditional feel. Nothing is very modern; it’s all very rustic. Probably the opposite of what you’re used to,” Harry says._ _

__“Yeah, really modern in our place,” Louis says, looking out the window at the large amount of property. “Do you have a pool back there, too?”_ _

__“We do. And my mom has a big garden where she grows all sorts of fruits and vegetables over the summer. I’m sure she’s going to send you with a huge bag of stuff to take with us and tell me I’m not feeding you well,” Harry rolls his eyes with a smile. “She’s so maternal.”_ _

__“She’s lovely,” Louis smiles. “I can’t wait to see her again. Is she home or do you think she’s at work?”_ _

__“Oh, she doesn’t work. She’s been a stay at home mom since Gemma was born. My dad really didn’t want her to go back because she took care of us and the house and everything, and now she’s just used to it. Like I said, my dad wasn’t the greatest guy, but she’s happy, so that’s all that matters. She keeps herself busy with gardening and she runs a book club and does a lot of volunteer work at the hospital. She reads to the kids and stuff. She’s getting older, too, so it’s probably best she isn’t working. She’s had some health issues so she does what she can.”_ _

__“I always knew she would be one of those moms,” Louis grins. “I knew when she mailed you cookies every month and sent you off to school with a homemade cake that she was that mom. You must have been the house to go to when you were growing up because she always had the best snacks. Am I right?”_ _

__“Oh, totally. You’re good at this game,” Harry laughs._ _

__“Well, my mom personally was nothing like that, but my friend Stan’s mom was, so we were always hanging around his place. Gotta find the place to go.”_ _

__“I didn’t have to look far,” Harry smiles, pulling into the driveway and putting the van in park. “She’s going to be so happy to see us. I think Gemma is still in Europe on vacation so she’s all alone.”_ _

__“We should have brought something!” Louis shouts, panicked. “We should have brought flowers or a coffee cake or something! Why didn’t I think of this?!”_ _

__“Lou, it’s okay,” Harry laughs, putting his hand on Louis’ neck to calm him down. “She’s got more flowers than she knows what to do with and if I know my mom, she’ll already be baking something better than some grocery store dry cake.”_ _

__“Okay, okay,” Louis sighs. “Like you said, she doesn’t know me as your boyfriend. Now I’m nervous.”_ _

__“Don’t be. She loves you, I told you.”_ _

__“Yeah, you’re right.”_ _

__They get out of the van and Harry takes Louis’ hand as they make their way towards the front door. Harry rings the doorbell and his mother opens the door. The look on her face is like the sun finally shining through after a week of rain._ _

__“Harry!”_ _

__Harry moves into her arms and she begins to cry. Harry rubs her back and smiles into her neck._ _

__“Hey, mom.”_ _

__“What are you doing here?” she asks, holding him at arm’s length. “You look wonderful. Been eating okay? You’ve been safe? How is your trip?”_ _

__“Mom,” Harry laughs. “We’re going to stay for a few days, so you don’t have to ask all your questions in thirty seconds.”_ _

__“We?” she asks, and looks besides Harry to find Louis. Again, she lights up. “Oh, Louis! God, I didn’t even see you, sorry! I’m finally seeing my son for the first time since Easter, so you can imagine my surprise! Come here and give me a hug!”_ _

__Louis laughs and hugs Anne tightly. “Nice to see you again.”_ _

__“What are you two doing here?” she asks. “Come in, come in.”_ _

__She leads them inside and the house is as cozy and homey as Harry remembers it. Probably even more, now, with his father out of the picture and the house less tense._ _

__“We were close by and we figured we’d stop in,” Harry tells her as they end up in the living room, sitting on the couch. “I thought I owed you a visit, anyway.”_ _

__“You don’t owe me anything, sweetie,” Anne promises. “But I’m glad you’re both here! This house has been so quiet.”_ _

__Harry suddenly feels guilt budding in his chest, but he tries to swallow it down. His mother is a very understanding woman, and she knows that her children are grown up and need to explore the world. She would never hold that against them, and she wants the best for them. Harry calls her and texts her and visits her as often as possible, and he’s doing the best he can. He knows that’s good enough for his mother._ _

__“I’m glad we came, too. I—uh, we wanted to tell you something, actually,” Harry says. Louis looks over at him and gives him a small, reassuring smile._ _

__“Oh?” Anne asks, putting a plate of cookies out on the table. “What is it, honey?”_ _

__“Well, Louis and I are…” Harry starts, reaching over to intertwine their fingers together. “We’re together.”_ _

__Anne lets out a huge sigh of relief. “Oh, finally! I was afraid you were going to tell me something bad. It took you two long enough! I’m glad you finally came to your senses. Now, who wants tea?”_ _

__“That’s it?” Harry asks._ _

__“I think it’s been obvious to everyone except for the two of you that you’ve been in love since you first met. I’m sure when you get back to school and tell everyone, they’re going to say they thought you were already together,” Anne rolls her eyes fondly. “So, what about that tea?”_ _

__“Uh, yeah, sounds great,” Harry stumbles._ _

__“Yeah, thank you,” Louis smiles. She smiles back and walks into the kitchen. Harry and Louis look at each other and fall into a fit of laughter._ _

__“We were really stupid, weren’t we?” Louis asks. “Even all those people we met that assumed we were dating.”_ _

__“We basically have been, if you think about it,” Harry shrugs. “Since we met. It’s been just you and me for so long, I think. Everyone expected this, except us. We were just too scared.”_ _

__“Good thing we’re not scared anymore,” Louis smiles softly. “I don’t ever want to be scared again if that means being with you.”_ _

__“Ditto,” Harry grins, pressing a kiss to Louis’ lips._ _

__“You two really do make a lovely couple,” Anne smiles, coming back into the room with a tray of mugs, sugar, and tea bags. “Always thought you would be.”_ _

__“Yeah, I think I’ll keep him around,” Louis smiles, patting his thigh. “Thank you for raising him so well.”_ _

__“Thank you for making him so happy,” Anne responds, her voice softer. “I know how good you two will be together. Now if Gemma could only figure out her crap with that boy Josh and I’d be happy!”_ _

__They laugh and Harry loves his family so much. They’re all going to be absolutely fine without his father around. He won’t miss him or grieve for him, because he doesn’t deserve that. He was not a good husband or father or friend, and they’re all moving in the right direction without him.  
~  
Anne says she wants to make them dinner and suggests that Harry takes Louis around town to show him where he grew up. Louis loves the idea, pleading for Harry to do exactly that, and Harry really can’t say no to him if he wanted to._ _

__Harry promises that they’ll be home before dinner is ready and gives his mother a tight hug and a kiss. He really has missed her, and he needs her to know how important she is in his life, even if he doesn’t always do the best job of showing it._ _

__The two of them drive around in their van with Harry pointing out places that seemed important to him. They passed the nearby park Harry’s mother would always take him to growing up. There are tons of pictures of infant Harry with a toddler Gemma toddling around and trying to get him to participate, even at only a few months old. She was always quite bossy, and she still is._ _

__He remembers playing with his toys under the big oak trees, making sandcastles in the sandbox, learning to push himself on a swing, and playing football with all of his friends. He has a lot of good memories of that park, and he’s glad he can share with Louis._ _

__They drive past all of Harry’s previous schools and little hole-in-the-wall places he used to go eat with his friends for some cheap food and a good time. Louis asks questions and seems so genuinely interested in Harry’s past, and Harry loves him._ _

__“I really like it here,” Louis says. “It’s so different from the city, you know? It’s not as busy and crowded and you have all these big green parks and it’s all so beautiful.”_ _

__“Yeah. You hate it when you’re younger, because you feel like there’s nothing around, you know? But then as I get older, I appreciate it more. It really does feel like home, and I enjoy coming back here. It’s always so comforting. I can’t wait until tonight to sleep in my own bed, in my own house, after so many days on the road. I really do love it here,” Harry says._ _

__“I can see why,” Louis smiles._ _

__They continue driving around for a while, but Louis points something out. “Wait! We should stop here!”_ _

__“Stop where?” Harry asks._ _

__“The tattoo parlor. We should get tattoos!” Louis says excitedly._ _

__“Are you crazy?” Harry laughs. “We are not getting tattoos.”_ _

__“Oh, c’mon, ya big baby! It’ll be so fun!” Louis pouts, gripping Harry’s bicep. “Please?”_ _

__“We’ll go in, but I’m not getting anything,” Louis warns. “I’ll watch you get something.”_ _

__“Fine,” Louis rolls his eyes. “I’ll get you to change your mind!”_ _

__Harry parks the van and they walk into the small place holding hands. Harry tries not to be intimated by the employees with tattoos all over their bodies and all sorts of piercings. One guy by the front is big and burly with a long beard and tats covering the length of his arms. Harry just hopes they aren’t those homophobic sort of people._ _

__“Hi,” Louis smiles at him. He’s always such a charmer and so confident in himself. Harry admires that about him. “We don’t have an appointment, but do you think you could squeeze us in?”_ _

__“Him,” Harry corrects. “I’m not getting anything.”_ _

__“Is what he thinks,” Louis laughs. The man actually smiles._ _

__“I guess it’s your lucky day, because we’ve been pretty slow. Any idea of what you want?”_ _

__“Yeah,” Louis tells him. Harry looks over at him, confused. This was just a spur of the moment thing, how did he already have something in mind without even looking at anything? Has he been planning this for a while?_ _

__“Great. Have a picture?”_ _

__“I don’t, but I can google it and pull it up.”_ _

__“Yeah, sure thing.”_ _

__“What are you getting?” Harry asks, completely puzzled._ _

__“Do you remember the night we first kissed?” Louis asks, turning towards him and putting his hands on Harry’s hips. “And you pointed out that star constellation? Draco?”_ _

__“Yeah, I remember,” Harry replies softly with a smile._ _

__“That’s what I’m getting,” Louis murmurs. “Reminds me of our getting together.”_ _

__Harry really, truly can’t believe this. They’ve just started dating, and it already seems like forever between them. It shouldn’t be this big of a deal, because it’s only a collection of stars that could mean anything, something people get all the time, but the two of them will know the deeper meaning._ _

__“That’s a great idea,” Harry says quietly. “Where are you gonna get it?”_ _

__“My ribs, maybe. What do you think?”_ _

__“Good spot,” Harry hums. “Sexy, very sexy.”_ _

__Louis giggles and nods. “Yeah, okay. Ribs it is.”_ _

__Louis pulls up a picture and the artist sets up, printing out an outline. Louis takes off his shirt once they’re escorted into a room. Louis doesn’t even look a little nervous._ _

__“Feeling confident?”_ _

__“Yeah, I’m excited,” Louis shrugs. “Always wanted to get a tattoo. Now we have an excuse.”_ _

__Harry laughs and sits beside him. “Do you need me to hold your hand while he does it?”_ _

__“Probably,” Louis smiles. “Might not be the most pleasurable thing, with a needle and all that.”_ _

__“Mm,” Harry hums in agreement._ _

__“Ready to get this done?” the man, Rick, Harry found out, asks._ _

__“Let’s do it.”_ _

__Harry holds Louis’ hand when the buzzing of the needle begins. Louis bites his lip and looks over at Harry._ _

__“Does it hurt?”_ _

__“Not really, no. It’s just sort of weird. Don’t let go of my hand though,” Louis jokes with a smile._ _

__“Never will,” Harry promises softly._ _

__“You two been together long?” Rick asks._ _

__“Actually, no,” Louis laughs. “Less than a week, but it was a long time coming.”_ _

__“Ah, had that with my own lady,” Rick says. “You guys high school almost-sweethearts?”_ _

__“Close, oblivious college roommates,” Harry says with a smile. “We figured it out though.”_ _

__“Mm, finally,” Louis grins._ _

__“You two are good together, it seems, so I’m happy for you,” Rick smiles. Harry can’t believe he thought this guy would be homophobic and rude just because of the way he looked. He knows he shouldn’t judge books by their cover, but he gets nervous about peoples’ perceptions of him and his sexuality. He knows it’s not good to worry about it, and he should be confident, like Louis. Whatever, he’s working on it._ _

__“I think I want to get one,” Harry says suddenly, watching Rick tattoo on Louis’ right ribcage. Louis looks at him with wide eyes._ _

__“A tattoo? You’re going to get one?” he asks happily._ _

__“Yeah, I’m going to go for it. If you can do it, I can do it.”_ _

__“Well, that’s big talk, isn’t it?” Louis jokes. “What are you going to get?”_ _

__“Same as you, if that’s alright,” Harry says, his voice soft. Louis smiles fondly and bites his lips._ _

__“That’s better than alright.”_ _

__Harry doesn’t care if matching tattoos are a stupid idea this early in their relationship. He’s going to do this. He’s going to stop being so afraid and be more spontaneous and confident like Louis. Besides, not many people will know they have a matching set, since Louis’ will often be hidden by clothing._ _

__“Where do you want it?” Louis asks, his eyes shining brightly. Harry did that._ _

__“I think right here,” Harry says, touching the lower portion of his tricep._ _

__“I like that spot,” Louis hums. “I like to hold your arm there when you’re plowing into me.”_ _

__Harry blushes furiously, so he’s glad Louis is thankfully very quiet as he speaks and Rick doesn’t seem to hear. Hopefully._ _

__“You’re filthy,” Harry whispers in his ear and presses a kiss to his temple._ _

__Once Louis’ tattoo is finished, Louis bends his body to try and get a good view. “Oh, this is sick! Thanks so much, man, I love it.”_ _

__“Yeah, looks really good,” Harry murmurs. “Wow. I love it on your ribs.”_ _

__“Thanks,” Louis smiles. “Your turn, big guy.”_ _

__“Ready?” Rick asks, prepping to do Harry’s._ _

__“Do it before I change my mind.”_ _

__Rick smiles and gets ready while Louis and Harry trade places. Rick gives Louis all of his aftercare information and bandages his fresh ink up. Louis carefully puts his shirt back on and sits besides Harry._ _

__“It’s not that bad, baby, I promise,” Louis says, pushing his hair out of his face. “I’ll hold your hand, too.”_ _

__“Thanks,” Harry smiles._ _

__Louis grabs his hand as Rick begins his work. Harry winces slightly at the initial shock of it, but it’s not bad at all. The tattoo doesn’t take too long, since it’s fairly small, and Harry turns his arm to look at it before Rick puts the wrap over it._ _

__“Looks good,” Harry smiles. “What do you think, babe?”_ _

__“Looks hot,” Louis agrees. “Can’t believe we’re matching now.”_ _

__“Don’t back out on me now, because it’s too late to change it,” Harry scolds and Louis giggles._ _

__“Bad time to say I want to break up?”_ _

__“That’s not funny,” Harry frowns._ _

__“Sorry,” Louis grins, kissing him softly. “It’s not funny. I wouldn’t do that to you.”_ _

__“Better not.”_ _

__“You’re all set, boys,” Rick says. “You can follow me to the front.”_ _

__Louis pays for both of them and thanks Rick again, taking Harry’s hand as they walk out and back to the van._ _

__“I can’t believe we just did that,” Harry says, adrenaline still pumping weakly through his body. There’s such a thrill of getting inked, especially knowing he’s got a matching one to Louis for life, no matter what happens between them. It’ll always be there._ _

__“Regret it already?” Louis teases. “That was fast.”_ _

__“Course not, baby,” Harry promises. “Just so weird, you know?”_ _

__“Yeah, I know what you mean.”_ _

__“Want to go back to my place? We can hang out and watch movies if you want.”_ _

__“Yeah, it’ll be nice to chill out in a living room,” Louis smirks. “Instead of the van. Not that our van isn’t lovely.”_ _

__“It is lovely, and don’t you forget it.”_ _

__“I won’t,” Louis assures with a smile. “Promise.”  
~  
That night, they curl into bed together in Harry’s childhood bedroom. Harry is spooning Louis, his leg thrown over Louis’. Louis rubs Harry’s forearm that’s on his abdomen and Harry kisses his jaw._ _

__“Nice to be home,” Harry murmurs. “Especially since you’re with me.”_ _

__“I’m glad I came,” Louis replies. “So glad.”_ _

__“Me too.”_ _

__“It’s gonna be so weird going back to school,” Louis says. “How are we going to cuddle in tiny twin size beds?”_ _

__“We’ll figure something out,” Harry grins. “Plus, one more year, and we’ll have our own apartment. We can have loud sex and not worry about an RA coming to yell at us.”_ _

__“That’s definitely going to happen,” Louis groans. “I know it is.”_ _

__“Probably. You’re quite loud.”_ _

__“Hey,” Louis gives his hand a gentle slap. “You’re no quiet mouse yourself, pal.”_ _

__Harry snorts and tightens his arm around Louis. “Can’t seem to help myself when it comes to you.”_ _

__“Mm,” Louis grins. “Good.”_ _

__It’s silent for a while, and Harry thinks Louis may have fallen asleep, but he speaks up. “I sometimes fantasize about spending my life with you.”_ _

__“Oh?” Harry asks, his heart hammering in his chest. It’s surreal hearing Louis talk like this, especially when Harry has felt this way for so long. He’s fantasized about the same exact thing, especially now that they’ve started dating. Harry thinks about living with Louis past college, moving into a house that they’ve both paid for, eventually proposing to Louis with a ring and getting married, then looking into adoption or surrogacy. He might be ahead of himself, but he’s still on a high from their matching tattoos. He’s on top of the world. “Like what?”_ _

__“Like, living with you, after college, I mean. Us buying a house together. Maybe getting married somewhere down the line and…maybe a few kids, too.”_ _

__Harry is stunned. He can’t believe everything he wants, Louis wants. It’s sort of mind blowing. He grins so hard his cheeks ache. “I want the same things, Lou. Same exact things.”_ _

__“You do?” Louis asks timidly. “I wasn’t really sure if it was too soon to say that. It felt like the right moment, though, didn’t it?”_ _

__“It was,” Harry assures, kissing his bare shoulder. “Because of all that sounds lovely. I want all of that with you.”_ _

__“Good, good,” Louis says, his voice a little more confident._ _

__“I love you. We’re going to make it, I can feel it. I never, ever want to let you go, I’m sure of that. You’ve wormed your way into my life and now I can’t imagine it without you.”_ _

__“Course you can’t,” Louis says triumphantly. “I’m too loveable. But I know what you mean. I feel the same way about you.”_ _

__“…and you love me too?”_ _

__“And I love you too,” Louis giggles. “I thought I implied that when I said I wanted to have children with you.”_ _

__“I know, I just wanted to hear you say it. Sounds so nice coming from those lips.”_ _

__“I’ll say it all the time, then,” Louis says, turning his head towards Harry and pushing his lips out, searching for a kiss. Harry grins and grants his wish.  
~  
“So, you ready to go home?” Harry asks, looking over at Louis. Louis smiles and takes his hand, intertwining their fingers over the middle console._ _

__“I already am home. I find home every time I look into your eyes.”_ _

**Author's Note:**

> my tumblr is hilourry and i really appreciate feedback :)


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